Why Can't I See What He Does?
by blazergrl89
Summary: Originally a Jonas Brothers Story, but changed it so it's legal. Nate Gray has to be hospitalized, but what happens when Jason falls for a volunteer worker. Jason/OC I don't own Camp Rock.
1. Chapter 1

I sighed as I walked into work for the day. Yes, it's true that I'm only a volunteer here a couple days a week, but it still feels so much like work. I don't really need this "job"; I'm not even a pre-med student. Although I am majoring in Elementary Education, so I guess working at a Children's Hospital will end up helping me in the long run. Since I'm not very busy this semester I volunteer at the hospital on my university's campus every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday.

Most of the time I just go around to rooms to visit the children, you know, be the "older sibling." I give the kids someone to talk to, play with, stuff like that. Sometimes on special occasions I am allowed to dress up like a cartoon character and put on a show with some other friends of mine who work here as well. Other times, such as today, they use me for "special cases."

I walked into work a couple of minutes early.

"Hey, Alana! I am so glad you're here early!" I watched as the head of the volunteers walked over to me.

"Hi, Cindy. I'm nervous. You only look like that when you want me to do something different." She grinned.

"Lena, you know a lot about music and the pop music entertainment, correct?" She asked me. I gave her a confused look.

"Um, I guess you could say that. Not so much pop, more rock-ish, but I like variety." She knew I was in a garage type band so why would she waste her time asking?

"Good. Come into my office." She asked. Oh great. I'm fired. How can they fire me? I'm a volunteer! They can only ask me to leave, right? Or maybe she wanted my band to perform for the kids! That had to be it. She likes me too much to ask me to leave.

I walked in and she shut the door behind me. "Lana, we got a very important patient in last night. He seems to be suffering from Hypoglycemia, which thank the stars above, is something I know we can take care of. Not many people know that he is even here; only some of our best doctors, myself, and now you. We placed him in intensive care so only staff members with certain passes are allowed in."

"What is so special about this guy?" I asked still confused.

"Well, he and his brothers are rock stars. Their mother says they have been working themselves sick. That is probably why this poor boy is even here. Anyways, I called you in here to let you know that he will now be your only patient."

"What?! You can't do that! What about Holly and Colt? You can't just take me away from them! They need me…… I need them" I finished in a whisper.

Then it hit me! "Sherry! She's due any time now. Cindy, I told you I might need to take a break soon. If Sherry goes into labor while I'm working you know I'm going to have leave right then and there. Sam and I are all she has."

I could hear Cindy sigh. "Fine, but this new patient comes first until Sherry goes into labor. After the he is taking care of then you are allowed to go spend some time with Holly and Colt."

I sighed in defeat.

"He is in room 205. His name is Nathan Gray." I closed my eyes, trying to think clearly. Hmm, that name sounds so familiar. Maybe when I see his face I'll know who he is.

"Go check on him now. See if he would like some breakfast. Remember Lana, I trust you. No freak outs or asking for autographs. Also, do not let anyone but his family in his room when you are with him. Got that?"

"Yes ma'am!" I stood up and saluted. Cindy did not find it as funny as I did, so I got out of there as fast as I could.


	2. Chapter 2

I reached room 205 in no time and quietly knocked on the door. A tall, wide built man answered the door and let me in. "Hi," I stuck out my hand "My name is Alana and I will be taking care of Mr. Nathan Gray." The man shook my hand with a smile. "Hello, I'm Mr. Gray, but you may call me Paul." I returned his smile. Just then a woman came up next to Mr. Gray and placed one hand on his back while sticking out her other one for me. "Why, hello there. I'm Mrs. Gray, but please call me Denise." I smiled at her and shook her hand as well.

"How is he feeling?" I whispered to both of them. Mrs. Gray smiled a little. "Well he did get a good night's rest, so that's wonderful. He's just been working so hard. I should have stopped him, all of them. I blame myself." She looked down.

I placed a hand gently on her arm. "Mrs. Gray," I started and she looked at me with a slight smile, "um, Denise, I just want to inform you that hypoglycemia can occur even if he was just sitting at home playing video games all day. This is no one's fault. Things like this happen, ma'am, but I promise you that we will take the best care of him. We are the best hospital in the state." I told her, smiling proudly.

She gently pulled me into a hug. "Thank you so much, Alana. That has helped tremendously." I looked over and saw Mr. Gray smiling at me, silently thanking me.

I walked over to Nate's bed to see him slowly waking up. "Good Morning, Sunshine!" I said with a smile. "My name is Alana, and I am here for anything you need…non-medical wise." I said laughing quietly. "How are you feeling this morning" I asked him.

"Tired," he groaned. I just smiled, trying not to laugh. "Yes, it is quite early. How about I get you some nice warm breakfast? Sound good?"

"Sounds amazing."

"Anything in particular?" I asked.

"Nah, anything sounds good right about now," he replied. I could tell he was still groggy from some meds the hospital must have given him last night.

"Alright, I'll be back in a jiffy!" He groaned and rolled over facing the other side. I turned to his mother and father. "May I bring you two back anything?"

"Oh, no thank you dear. We will probably be gone when you get back. We have a younger son who needs us for part of the day. Our other sons will be here with Nate though. Don't worry, they will find their own food honey. Thank you so much for taking care of one of our baby boys." I smiled again at Mrs. Gray. This lady had to be one of the sweetest women I have ever met.

I shook their hands and went to the café to get Nate some breakfast.

When I returned to Nate's room I quietly knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" I heard someone ask in an unusually high pitched voice.

"Um, Alana with food," I replied hesitantly.

"Alana with food, who?" The voice asked again.

"What? I'm confused,"

"What?! You told me your name was Alana!" I sighed. The tray was getting very heavy.

"Shane!! Just open the door and let the poor girl in!" I heard someone yell in my defense.

Slowly the door opened and I sort of pushed my way in. In a hurry I walked over to Nate, ignoring the other two. I sat the tray down on his lap and sighed. Then I turned around to see two other boys who looked almost just like Nate, but only older.

I glared. "Which one of you wouldn't let me in? That tray was very heavy and I almost dropped all of his food." The younger looking of the two stepped forward. "Aw, I'm sorry. I didn't know you were _carrying_ the food." I noticed he looked sincerely sorry so I just smiled.

"It's alright…This time." I said trying to keep a serious look on my face. The boy actually looked kinda scared. I just laughed and stuck out my hand. "The name's Alana." He looked at my hand like it was some foreign object.

"Shane! Don't be rude." The older boy came up next to the one I now assumed was Shane. He smiled at me and took my hand that was still left there hanging.

"My name is Jason," he told me smiling, and gently squeezing my hand.

I don't know what came over me, but I started to blush! I smiled like a shy little school girl. "I'm Alana," I told him kind of quietly.

"This guy next to me is my brother Shane. Sorry about him. He means only good, but sometimes it can get out of hand. Can't it Shane?" Jason gave his brother a stern look. Shane just looked at the ground ashamed.

"Alana, I am sorry," Shane said to me and stuck out his hand. I smiled and took his hand. "No worries. I have a sense of humor, you don't have to be scared of me…well, you don't have to be scared of me all the time that is," I told him with a serious look on my face, but I couldn't hold it in any longer then I started laughing.

As soon as I got over my dumb little joke with Shane I heard Nate put his fork down. "Are you full? I could go get you some more if you would like," I informed him. He just smiled. "No thank you. I'm stuffed," he said, rubbing his belly. Everyone laughed a little. "Well, do you need anything else?" He thought for a minute. "I don't think so. Wait! Do you have like a radio or anything?"

"Hmm. I don't think there is a radio, but I do have my iPod. I need to go see two other children before my shift is up today. You can borrow it while I'm with them if you would like."

"You don't mind?" He asked me.

"Of course not. It's not like I can listen to it while I'm working anyways," I told him grinning. I pulled my iPod out of my pants pocket. "If anyone asks where you got that, it wasn't me. I think I could get in trouble for that."

"OOO…You gonna get in troubleeee!!!!" I heard Shane yell at me. I spun around to face him, pouting. "No! Please don't tell anyone."

"Haha!!" He busted out laughing. "Your face!!...Priceless!" he had trouble breathing he was laughing so hard. I glared at him, while turning to face Nate.

"Anyways…here you go Nate," I showed him a switch on the side of his bed. "Jason you should probably look at this too." Jason walked over and stood right next to me. I could feel his presence so close, for some reason my knees starting getting weak. Why was he having this effect on me? I told myself I was never gonna have this feeling again. No man will hurt me again…I promised myself.

"What is it?" Jason asked looking me in the eyes

I forgot everything I was just thinking, and smiled at him then shook my head slightly.

"There are two buttons on this switch. The red one is for medical assistance, and the green one is for anything else. It will contact me." I smiled at Nate and Jason. "I will come back whenever you need me." I waved at all of them while walking out the door to go find Holly and Colt.


	3. Chapter 3

Jason's POV

I just stood there watching Alana walk out the door. She was so beautiful, and the best part is she didn't even freak out when she saw us. She treated us like she would anyone else. That was an awesome feeling…I can't remember the last time that has happened.

I felt a hand slowly slide on my chest. "Woo, I will come back anytime you need me," Shane said in a girly voice. I pushed him away, blushing. Wait…Am I blushing? Why? I just met this girl; no way should I be crushing on her. I don't know anything about her, and plus I don't know how long we'll even be here. No, I will not do this. She will just be a friend, if that much.

"Knock it off, Shane!"

"Guys, did you notice that she didn't even recognize us?" Nate asked butting into the conversation. I nodded. "What's weird is I was looking through her iPod, and we're in here. So she must know who we are, right?" Nate looked confused.

"You're right. Maybe she was told not to say anything about that to us? You are sick, and if she freaked over us, that might just stress you more, which would take you longer to get better?" I told him.

"Or maybe she lives under a rock and just doesn't know what we look like? You know, like our music but have no idea what we actually look like?" Shane intervened. "That's a possibility too." Nate said.

"Or!..." Shane yelled "…it's not her iPod and she stole it from one of these little kids around here!" Nate and I sighed and rolled our eyes. "Shane! That is a horrible thing to say about someone, especially when she's been so nice to all of us." For some reason Shane being mean to her was making me angry. I knew he was joking, but still. I needed to get out of here. Shane was just too much for me right now.

"I think I'm going to go for a walk, guys. Nate, are you going to be ok here alone with Shane?" I asked. He nodded. "Just don't be too long, ok?"

"Don't worry. Remember, you can call my cell or page Alana." I told him while putting a hat on and walking out of the room.

Alana's POV

"Alana!!" I heard two kids yell as I walked into the play center. They came over to me and tackled me in a hug. I laughed and hugged them back close to me. "How are you two feeling today?"

"We were bored, but now that you are here, we can play a fun game!" Holly said. "Well, why couldn't you play a fun game without me?" I asked her. "You _always_ think of the fun games," Colt said crawling into my lap as I sat down on the floor. He yawned and laid his head against my chest. "Hmm, it looks like it's time for yall's nap.

"Noooo," Holly whined. "Yesss," I told her, tapping on her nose. I stood up, struggling a little with Colt in my arms. I managed to get on my feet, but when I tried to walk my knee gave out and I started to fall backwards. Luckily before I hit the ground, I landed in someone's arms. Before I turned around to see who it was, I laid Colt down on a beanbag chair. I turned to see none other than Jason smiling back at me. I blushed again. Why?! I gotta stop doing that.

"Why, thank you, kind sir." I told Jason, trying not to blush. "Of course, m'lady. I'm just glad I could keep you from getting hurt." Jason told me with a sly grin upon his lips.

"You are so kind. I like you a whole lot more than Shane. He would have probably let me fall," I told Jason trying to make him laugh. It worked and he laughed the cutest laugh ever. I don't remember the last time a guy has made me smile so much. I know this can't go anywhere, but he just makes me so happy. Maybe we can become best friends for his time being here.

"Do you need any help with these two?" he asked motioning towards Holly and Colt.

I knelt down to their level. "Holly, this is Jason. He's a new friend I made not too long ago." Jason knelt down in front of her, and smiled. "Hi, Holly," Jason said in a sweet voice. Holly blushed at him, which was good. This means that he has that effect on every girl, not just me. I reached down and picked up Colt.

"Jasonnn, Alana is carrying Colt. Will you carry me?" She asked holding up her arms for him. I laughed at her. Even though she's shy at first, it obviously doesn't last very long. Jason just smiled at her and pulled her up into his arms. She wrapped her tiny arms around his neck and held on to him.

"Holly's room is right next to Colt's. I'll tuck him in and then I'll come in her room, alright? Just follow me." Jason followed me to the rooms, and took Holly into hers. I laid Colt down and pulled up the covers. I gave him a soft kiss on the forehead. "Good night, kid," I whispered as I walked out the room.

I quietly walked into Holly's room to see Jason pulling up her covers to tuck Holly in. I walked up next to him, and stood at the edge of the bed. Holly yawned and snuggled into her bed. "Will y'all tell me a bedtime story?" Holly asked Jason and me. Jason looked at me with a clueless look on his face. I smiled to comfort him and whispered, "She loves Disney movies. I'll start and you jump in at any time." He nodded in agreement.

"Once upon a time, there was a little girl, just like you," I started the story. Holly loved it when she could imagine herself as a character. "She grew up, and was living a plain life, which she was happy with, or so she thought. One day though, while this girl was out grocery shopping for her family she ran into a boy. The girl noticed that the boy was dressed in baggy, torn up clothes. She asked if he was alright or if he needed any help…" before I could go on Jason jumped in. "The boy was moved by how caring the girl was, and told her he was fine. He wasn't ready to see her leave yet, so he asked if he could help her with the groceries." Jason finished.

I smiled, "She was happy that she could spend more time with the boy. The girl and the boy talked the whole way to the girl's house. She enjoyed having the boy's company, and being able to talk to someone. She was starting to trust the boy and wished he didn't have to leave."

"The boy shared the feelings and was starting to care for the girl." I tried not to look over at Jason, but I noticed he was glancing in my direction with a smile on his face.

"But the girl did not know that the boy was really a prince who was dressed in shaggy clothes so he could go out in public. Before the girl was to go inside the boy invited her to a ball. She accepted, and the boy told her to meet him out in the garden at 11 P.M."

"The boy was very excited to see the girl again, and couldn't wait until the ball. All week the only thing the boy could think about was the girl, until finally it was time for the ball."

I started again, "The girl was so nervous about seeing the boy again. It took her forever to get ready; she couldn't remember the last time she got so dolled up. She arrived at the party around 10:45, so she went directly to the gardens. It was a beautiful night and Christmas lights were all around the garden. The girl was getting even more nervous, because the boy was late."

"The boy walked up behind her and placed his hands over the girl's eyes. She turned in surprise to see the boy all dressed up. The girl was shocked that the boy was a prince. The boy hoped that the girl would not freak out and leave." Jason looked like he was deep in thought as he continued his part of the story.

"The girl got over her shock as soon as she remembered that this was the same boy who walked her home and helped her with the groceries. She smiled at him and gave him a hug."

I looked at Jason, and he smiled at me. "They soon started dancing. They danced and talked and laughed. The boy was just so happy with this girl; he never wanted to let her go. Soon the boy heard the clock ring for midnight."

As soon as Jason finished his sentence my beeper went off. Nate needs me for something. I looked at Jason, "can you finish off here? Your brother needs me." Jason nodded and then gave me a smile, but for some reason he looked sad in his eyes. I just let it go, and looked over at Holly. She was almost asleep, so I think he can handle the rest of the story. I gave Jason a hug goodbye, and whispered "thank you for this" into his ear and headed out the door.

Jason's POV

I watched Alana walk out the door and silently whispered to myself "Good-bye, Cinderella." I then turned back around to Holly.

"Where were we?" I asked Holly. "The clock hit midnight," she told me half asleep. I smiled at how cute she was. "Oh yeah, so the clock started to ring. The boy noticed that the girl had a worried look on her face. She told him that her curfew was midnight and she had to be home soon. She hugged the boy, but before he let her go he kissed her cheek. She blushed as she ran away. Luckily for the boy, he knew where she lived. The next morning he went to her home, and proposed to her. The girl happily accepted and they were married. They lived happily ever after."

By the time I finished my story Holly was asleep. I smiled, whispered good night to the sleeping girl, and headed back to check up on my brother and Alana.


	4. Chapter 4

On my way back to Nate's room I saw a boy, around the age of 10 I would guess, looking around like he was lost. The poor boy looked like he was about to cry, so I walked over to him.

"Hi sweetie, is everything ok?" I tried to be as motherly as I could while kneeling down to his level; this always seemed to comfort the other kids around the hospital. He looked at me, and I could tell he was debating whether or not to talk to me. Finally, he opened up to me. "I was with one of my brothers, and I sort of wondered off," he admitted to me like he was in trouble, "and now I can't find him anywhere." Hmm…

"Aw honey, that's ok, we'll find him together. My name is Alana and I work here, so I'll take good care of you. What is your name?" I asked him as sweetly as I could. He looked down and whispered, "Josh."

"It's nice to meet you, Josh," I smiled at him. "If you don't mind me asking, what is your brother's name?" He finally looked up at me, and smiled. "His name is Shane. I also have 2 more and they're supposed to be here too. Do you know Nate or Jason?" I laughed immediately, and put my hand on his back. "Yes honey, I know all of them. Come on and I'll take you back to Nate's room. They must be worried sick." For the first time since our conversation started Josh's face lit up and he grabbed my hand so I could lead him to Nate's room.

Josh and I were outside Nate's room and I could hear someone yelling at Shane.

"You LOST Josh?! How could you?!" I heard a voice booming at Shane. "Uh, well…he wondered away from me!" Shane defended himself. "Why aren't you out looking for him?!" I decided that was my cue.

I knocked quickly before opening the door. As soon as the door was open Josh ran in and jumped up on Nate's bed. I laughed as I walked in behind him. What I saw was an angry looking Jason still fuming from the yelling he just gave his brother. Shane looked relieved when he saw Josh run in, and poor Nate was just lying in bed still listening to my iPod.

"Hello boys!" I announced trying to break the awkwardness. "Alana! Did you find Josh?" Jason asked me. "She did! And she was very nice," Josh answered for me. Jason came up to me and gave me the biggest hug. It felt amazing being in his arms. It was strange, I barely knew the guy but yet I just felt so safe in his arms. No…this is dumb, guys can't protect you from the hurt that they cause. Despite the argument with myself I decided that I should hug Jason back, so I didn't seem rude.

"Thank you for finding my little brother," he whispered into my ear, causing me shiver. He pulled back a little, "Are you alright?" he asked me. I nodded and smiled.

"Hey, first she takes care of Nate, and now Josh. Who's next, me or Jason?" Shane asked trying to make light of the situation. I smiled a wicked smile at him. "Well I'm guessing it's gonna be you if you lose Josh again. Jason looked like he wanted to kill you when I walked in." I heard Nate snicker from his bed.

"Oh, I forgot! Nate, are you ok? Why did you buzz?" He took out the earplugs. "I'm fine, it's just Cindy was in here earlier and she was telling me you get off soon. I wanted to see you before you left and give you back your iPod." Aw, he's the sweetest.

"Well if you want to you can keep it until I come back for my next shift." I told him. "I hate when kids are stuck here without any entertainment, although, your brothers do make great entertainment." I told him, while looking over at Shane who was starting an argument with Josh. Poor Jason just tried to ignore them, so he walked over next to me. Nate laughed a little and agreed with me.

"When is your next shift?" Nate asked. "Well, today is Monday so…the next time I should be back is Wednesday."

"Wednesday?!" Jason and Nate both asked. "Why not every day?" Jason asked, looking me in the eyes. "Because I have a good amount of classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I have no time."

"Oh," Jason noted in a disappointed tone. Aww, he's gonna miss me. I smiled to myself. I placed my hand on his back and gently rubbed it, "I'll be back in no time." He blushed like there was no tomorrow. HA! Mhmm, I can do it too. I smiled feeling confident in myself.

"I can't wait" I thought I heard him mumble. No, he wouldn't have said that, especially not out loud. I just brushed it off, but I did glance over at him, and he had a smirk on his face. No! Anyways… "Are you going to be ok with someone else taking care of you on my off days?" I asked Nate. He sighed, "I guess it'll just have to do." I laughed at him. I'm so glad they enjoy having me here. These have to be the sweetest boys that I have ever met.

"Alana, before you go, I wanted to ask you something." Nate piped up. "Yes?"

"Well," he paused for a minute, "this is your iPod, right?" I looked at him confused. "Yes, why do you ask?"

"Umm…do you know every artist on here?" he asked looking a little nervous. I am totally lost. What is he talking about? "Yes, I think so. My friend Sherry borrows it sometimes and adds some new songs every now and then, but it's cool cause we usually have the same taste in music." Then it hit me. Cindy said Nate was a rock star. His band must be on my iPod. Ahhh, makes sense now.

"Before I leave to head home, can I see my iPod for a second?" I asked Nate. He handed me it and I began to scroll through it. Finally I saw it! "**Connect 3**". Oh! That's who they are; I knew they looked sort of familiar. I've seen posters of them in some of the teenage girl's rooms.

I clicked into it, and listening to a song for a minute. I knew this music! Why had it not hit me before? Man, I feel dumb.

I handed Nate the iPod back while it was still playing the Connect 3. I looked at Nate first, then Shane, finally Jason. They all had worried looks on their faces, but Jason seemed to be the worst. This concerned me. Did they think I was gonna freak out and start treating them differently? Psh, whatever. These guys were the most down to earth people that I think I've ever met. I suddenly laughed. They thought I was gonna attack them or something! They looked at me like I was crazy.

"Ok guys, just because you're famous doesn't mean I'm going to act any different around y'all." I told them in all confidence. "Besides, my manager Cindy already told me Nate was in a band. I knew before I took the job…I just sort of…forgot." I finished with a quiet laugh. They all smiled. I could tell they were grateful. "Is there anything else you need, Nate, before I leave?" He thought for a minute. "Nope, I think I'm good." I smiled. "Good."

I looked at Jason, "Do you need anything?" He looked like he wanted something, but just shook his head no. "Shane, Josh, y'all need anything?" They shook their heads as well. I could tell they were all getting tired. "I'll be right back," I told them all. I left then quickly returned with pillows and blankets.

"In case any of you want to take a nap, there you go," I told them as I laid the blankets on one of the chairs. I finally told everyone goodbye. As soon as I was walking out the door I felt someone grab my hand. I turned to see Jason, staring into my eyes.

"Alana…" he sounded so nervous. "May I have your phone number?" Oh no, this can't be happening. I don't do relationships anymore. I just can't, but he just looks so cute. Maybe he just wants it to talk to someone, besides his family while he's here. I smiled a little. Deep down inside, although I don't want to admit it, I was sort of excited. "Of course."

He smiled, and I gave him my phone number. Before I was about to leave again, he leaned in and kissed my cheek. "I'll see you Wednesday, but I hope to talk to you before then," he winked at me and walked back into his brother's room.

….Oh boy….


	5. Chapter 5

When I got home that night I was so exhausted. Lucky for me my roommate wasn't home yet. I love my roommate, but when she's home I can never sleep. She always has her friends over and everyone is just so loud. So I took advantage of her not being here, I dropped my bags at the door and went straight to bed.

I woke up to my phone ringing. I looked at it to see who was calling. It was my friend Carolyn. I answered, "Hello?"

"Hey Alana!" I sighed, she was so loud. "Hey Care," I said still a little groggy. "Do you want to go get some coffee?" So tired…I do need to study so maybe I should go. "Alright, meet me in 20?" I asked trying to get out of bed. "Sounds good little lady! See you then!!" She was always so loud, but hey, I love her.

After getting up and getting ready (nothing too fancy, its only coffee) I grabbed my keys and was out the door. When I got to the coffee shop, I didn't see Carolyn's truck, so I went inside and sat down. I went to look for my iPod, but then I remembered I gave it to Nate for awhile. Oh well, it doesn't matter. I rested my head in my hand and closed my eyes. For some reason I was just so tired, and I had no idea why. I started to drift off but as soon as I did Carolyn dropped her purse on the table causing me to jolt awake.

"Hi Alanaaaaa," my friend greeted me. "Hey Care Bear."

"What's the matter with you? Why are you so tired?" Carolyn looked concerned. Aw, see even if she is loud she still loves me, which just made me love her more. "It's nothing really. I think it's just class and work, they are finally catching up to me."

"Well, let's get some coffee and make you feel all better," Care said while rubbing my back. I closed my eyes. Wow, that feels good. I didn't want to stand up, but she stopped. I sighed and finally stood up. We got in line and order our coffee. We got it, sat back down, and just started talking.

Suddenly, I noticed a guy that walked in. He was wearing a hat and sun glasses. That's weird. It's night time, why would anyone wear sun glasses? I looked at him, and then he smiled at me. Carolyn noticed. "Alana, that creepy guy just smiled at you!" She tried to whisper. "Shh!" I was so embarrassed. What if he heard her? Oh goodness. I tried not to look at him. Care was just laughing, enjoying how embarrassed I was. "Oh come on, Alana. When's the last time you even thought about dating?" I gave her a look that told her to stop where she was going. "Care, you know why I don't date anymore." I hope she'll drop this, although, she doesn't know the full story; she does know that I'm not looking for a relationship right now. I took a sip of my coffee, and then I heard Care ask, "Alana, do you want to get married some day?" I almost spit my coffee everywhere, but instead I just started choking a little.

Care patted my back, and finally when I got my coughing under control the creepy guy came over to our table. "Are you alright, Miss?" he asked with a smile. I looked at him, concentrating on his voice. Hmm, that voice sounds so familiar. I look at his face, I knew that smile anywhere. "Jason?" I asked quietly. His face lit up. "I heard you coughing. Are you alright, m'lady?" I blushed madly, but nodded. "Yes, thank you. Wanna sit down?" I asked looking up at him. He nodded and sat down.

I saw Carolyn trying to make eye contact with me. "Jason, this is my friend Carolyn, Carolyn this is my new friend Jason." She stuck out her hand, "Nice to meet you Carolyn," Jason took her hand and shook it. For some reason, this made me a little jealous. I started to look around the room to take my mind off things. I noticed people looking at Jason…oh; it must be cause of the sun glasses.

I gently placed my hand on Jason's, "um, Jase…people are staring at you," I whispered to him. I saw him look down at my hand lying on top of his. I quickly removed my hand. Oh no, maybe he doesn't want me to touch him. Or maybe he likes Carolyn now and doesn't want her to think we are together. My thoughts were interrupted when I felt his fingertips gently slide across the top of my hand, underneath the table. My face turned a little pink, and I tried to control my breathing. His touch felt so gentle and sweet.

"Yeah, people always stare. Trust me, its better they stare at me for my outfit instead of…you know," he whispered the last part only so I could hear. I tried to concentrate on what he was saying. Why did he always do this? What was the matter with me? I haven't even known this guy for one full day, and yet he was giving me crazy butterflies in my stomach and making me blush every chance he got.

That's it! He is a rock star. That is what they do to girls like me. They try to dazzle them every way they can, and right when they have the poor girl under their finger, they make a move. Well, I can promise you that I will not be just one of those girls!

As soon as I thought about the 'one night stand girls' I quickly snatched my hand away from his. Jason looked like I had just slapped him in the face, but I tried not to pay any attention to it. I noticed Care saw something going on between me and Jason.

"Oh well, I think I'm gonna hit the road, ok Alana?" My eyes grew huge. She was going to leave me here, alone with _him_. Before I had a chance to beg her to stay, she told Jason good bye and was out the door.

Jason and I were stuck together now, and it just felt so awkward. "So…" he started, trying to break the silence. I remembered Nate. "How's Nate doing?" I asked before he had a chance to say anything.

"He's doing well. Everyone at the hospital has been so nice."

"Good, I'm glad." _Silence…_

All of a sudden…

"Alana, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you in any way. I would never do that." I put my hand up to stop his talking. "Jason, please. Don't." He looked confused. "Can I just ask you one thing?" he looked desperate. I sighed, but nodded.

"Why did you snatch your hand away like that?" he had such a sad look on his face, it almost broke my heart. Now I was trying not to look him in the face.

"Jason, I'm sorry, but we've only known each other for a day. Moving that quickly is asking for trouble." I told him in all honesty.

"Romeo and Juliet agreed to be married after only their first day of knowing each other." I looked at him a bit taken back.

"Yes, and we all know how that story ends." I told him sadly. A couple of months ago I would have been putty in his hands by now. I use to be a hopeless romantic, that is until the day that I learned that love is not the answer to everything. Love can't take away all the pain; love can't fix every problem thrown your way. Relationships take more than love. They take a commitment, which in the past I was willing to give, but no one ever gave me the same consideration.

I sighed. "I'm sorry. You probably feel like I led you on." He looked confused. "How did you lead me on?" I kept looking down at my hands. "Well, I gave you my phone number…" I trailed off.

I could hear the smile in his voice, "Yeah, but I would hardly call that leading someone on." This made me feel a little better. I was debating if I should tell him the truth or not. "Jason…" I started. I could feel his eyes on me, so I looked up a little to see he was still wearing his sun glasses. "Please take those off," I asked him, "I wanna tell you why I feel this way."

Jason took off his sun glasses, and I was glad that I could finally see his eyes. "Jason, you're in a famous band. I have trust issues. Even if we did start to date, I don't think it would work out, so let's just skip the pain and not even try." He looked concerned.

"Someone really hurt you in the past didn't they?" I looked Jason in the eyes. He just looked so caring, like he wanted to take all my pain away. Maybe he isn't like all those other celebrities you read about in magazines. Maybe he would treat me the way I deserve to be treated.

"How about this…" Jason started, "My family and I are going to be here for awhile I think. We're going to stay not only until Nate gets better, but my parents said we deserve a well earned rest. So, how about we at least get to know each other a little better? Tomorrow, after your classes let's go hang out, just me and you."

I thought about this for a minute. "Like a date?" I asked. "If that's what you want to call it, or you can call it just friends hanging out, whichever one you prefer. In all honesty though, I prefer it be called a date," he told me with a sly grin.

I was so happy to see that smile that it actually caused me to grin. I sighed, still smiling. "Alright then, tomorrow we have a date," I told him matter-of-factly. We then decided that it was getting late and we both needed to head home. We picked up our coffees and headed for the door. Jason walked me to my car and before I got in he hugged me. While holding me in his arms I heard him whisper quietly, "I promise you, I will never hurt you." I pulled back a little to look him in the face. I could tell by the look in his eyes he was not lying to me. For the first time in a long time I was actually starting to trust a man again.


	6. Chapter 6

I woke up the next morning thanks to a loud TV and people laughing. I groaned and pulled my pillow over my head. Great, my roommate is home. I just want to go back to bed. All of a sudden, I heard a high pitched yelp and obnoxious laughter. I groaned again and then decided to get up and ready for class.

Once I was ready to head out, I walked through the living room to see it was a mess. Figures. My roommate has turned into a slob since she joined her sorority. She would always have friends come over, make a mess, and then leave it for me to clean up. The only reason I did clean up is because if I didn't, no one would. Kristen (my roommate) has changed so much since she joined her sorority. She never has any time to hang out with me anymore. I just sighed, and cleaned up as fast as I could before I had to leave.

While driving to class I suddenly remembered my date with Jason tonight. Oh crap. I have no idea what I'm going to wear. I don't know what we're doing, where we're meeting, I don't have a clue about anything. Why did I agree to this? I shouldn't even care about what I'm going to wear. We're just friends, and I should expect nothing more.

I sat through all my classes that day, but not once did I pay attention. I was either too busy fighting with myself, or thinking about Jason. During my biology class though, I finally decided what I was going to do…

There was no point in lying to myself anymore. I _did_ have a crush on Jason, and I'm not going to let jerks from the past ruin my life. I'm going to learn to take chances again. I'm going to learn to trust again. Jason seems to be like a genuine nice guy, and if he likes me then he deserves a chance. The only thing I can really do now is pray that he doesn't hurt me…

Finally my classes were done for the day. While I was driving home my phone rang. I looked at it. Hmm…unknown number. I answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hey Alana, it's me," I heard Jason say on the other end. I couldn't help but smile when I heard his voice.

"Hey Jase, what's up?" I was hoping he wasn't calling to cancel our plans for tonight. I'm actually looking forward to it, now that I've stopped arguing with myself.

"I was wondering if I could have your address so I know where to pick you up tonight." What is he talking about? He'll get lost trying to find where I live.

"You don't have to do that. Why don't we just meet at the place we're going? Or meet at the hospital or something?"

"No," he sounded…offended? "The gentlemen thing to do is for me to pick you up." I almost giggled like a little school girl. That is so sweet. I always wanted a guy like that. The "gentlemen" type. One to open doors, pull out chairs, walk me home, but I always seemed to get the jerks.

"Oh, alright," I said like I was defeated. I gave him my address.

"Oh, and Alana, tonight wear something comfortable and closed toed shoes with socks. Ok?" This was strange, but whatever. "Um, sure. May I ask where we are going?" He chuckled.

"You may ask all you want to, but that doesn't mean you will get an answer. It's a surprise," he sounded proud, "Until then, m'lady."

I laughed once I hung up the phone. He's so cheesy, but yet, so adorable. I was really starting to like him.

It was now time for my date, and I was so nervous. I don't know what's wrong with me. I've never been so nervous for a date before. I was sitting on the couch when I heard a knock at my door…Oh boy, it's time. I got up and answered it.

I opened the door to see Jason holding a single red rose, and wearing a smile on his lips.

"For you, m'lady," he told me handing me the rose. I blushed. No one has ever given me flowers before. "Thank you, Jason. Want to come in while I put this in a vase?"

"Sure, thank you," he walked in. I motioned to the couch, "Please, sit." He sat down and I went to the kitchen to find a vase. I found one, filled it with water, and brought it back to the living room. I put the rose in the vase, and placed it on the coffee table. "Alright, all ready," I told him. He smiled as he got up, "Ok, let's hit the road."

We walked to this car, but before I could open my door he stepped in front of me and opened it for me. I glared at him for stepping in front of me, but he only gave me a cheesy, teeth baring grin. I couldn't help but laugh at this. He waited for me to sit down and then closed the door for me as well.

Jason walked over to his side and got in. "So, where are we going?" I asked in excitement. "Still a surprise," he told me with a wink. I looked at him confused. "You do know that I live here, right?" I asked, and then soon felt dumb. He laughed a little. "Yes, I realize that, but as of right now you still have no clue where we're going. Why take all the fun out of it? So, let's change the subject." I could tell that he really did want to surprise me, so I dropped it.

"How's the fam? Especially Nate?" I asked him. "Everyone's good, but I'm getting the feeling that Nate is getting sort of upset."

"Why?" Oh no, maybe something got leaked out at the hospital about a pop star being treated there. "Well, being trapped in a bed for so long, I think it's starting to get to him. He wants to be out doing stuff. Like I said, we've been working so hard and then just to all of a sudden stop. It's hard." I nodded. "Do you know anything that will make him feel better?" I asked, hoping there was something I could do. "No, don't worry. Letting him borrow your iPod helped a lot." I smiled at him.

I started looking out the window, trying to figure out where we were going, but I've never been on this side of town before. We pulled into a parking lot, and that's when I saw the building.

"We're going ice skating?!" I was so excited. I haven't been ice skating since I was like 7 years old. Jason laughed at how excited I was. "It's like you knew that I've been wanting to go," I told him with a smile on my face. Then, he winked at me. My jaw dropped. "You knew I've been wanting to go? How?" I asked confused. He looked down sort of ashamed. "Well…I went to visit Holly again today, and she told me you've been wanting to go, so I confirmed with Cindy…" he finished quietly.

Aw, he's adorable. He wanted me to have such a great time that he asked for ideas. Before we were about to head inside I noticed Jason wasn't wearing his sun glasses or hat.

"Jason, where are your sun glasses and hat? Won't someone notice you?" I was getting worried. Our date is probably ruined. Jason could see the worry in my face. He placed his hand on top of mine, and smiled at me. "Hey, don't worry. I didn't forget," he winked at me again. I just tried not to let it bother me. While I was thinking, Jason had gotten out of the car, walked over and opened the door for me. He gave me his hand to help me out of the car. I gladly took it, but he was hesitant to let go while we were walking. To make him feel better, I held his hand with a firmer grip and smiled up at him. This seemed to make him more confident.

We walked to the ticket booth outside the building, and Jason walked up to pay. "Hey," I said while putting my hand on his arm, "you don't have to pay." I started to get my money out, but before I even could get my wallet out he had already paid. I glared at him, but he just stuck his tongue out at me. I couldn't help it, I just had to laugh. "Yes…sticking your tongue out…because that's the gentlemen thing to do," I joked while playfully nudging him. He laughed and opened the door for me. When I walked in, what I saw shocked me…

No one was there. I looked up at Jason with a shocked look on my face. He just smiled down at me and placed his arm around my shoulder. "Told you I wouldn't need my disguise."

"You…you…" I couldn't finish my sentence, "…rented the whole rink," Jason finished for me. "Why?" I still had trouble thinking. He grinned. "Cindy also told me what you were clumsy. I didn't want you do bump into someone, fall down, and get hurt. Remember, I promised I would never hurt you. That also means I won't let anyone else hurt you either."

My eyes started to water. Oh no. I think I'm going to cry. No one has ever done something so sweet for me. Jason pulled me closer to him and whispered, "C'mon, let's go skate." I was so grateful that he took my mind off crying.

We went to put on our skates. I was having trouble lacing mine. "Do you need some help?" Jason asked while trying not to laugh. "No! I can do it myself. Thank you." I turned away from him to hide that fact that I was still having trouble. I heard him laugh louder. "Here, let me," he moved in front of me and knelt down. He placed his hand on mine while he was trying to take the lace from me. He gently slid my hand off the lace. "Fine, you win," he looked up at me with a sly grin and winked. "I always do," this caused me to snort in laughter. I quickly out my hand over my mouth, and looked down. Oh goodness, I'm so embarrassed!! He laughed at me and just shook his head. He finished lacing my skates and helped me stand up.

We made our way to the rink. Jason stepped on the ice first, and held his hand out to me. I grabbed it and stepped onto the ice. Immediately, I slide the wrong way and almost busted my butt, but Jason caught me. I busted in fits of laughter, causing him to laugh too. "Why are you laughing?" he asked even though he was laughing too. "It's funny, I've wanted to do this for so long, and now when I get to, I stink at it," I finished still laughing. He smiled at me, and we straightened up, and tried again. This time was much better. I had good balance (with the help of Jason's support).

After skating for awhile I started to get so cold. I shivered a little and Jason noticed. He took off his jacket and placed it on my shoulders. I blushed and smiled. "Thank you," I told him quietly. "Of course, m'lady." I just laughed. "Are you always going to call me that?" He squeezed my hand. "Maybe. Do you have a problem with that?" he asked with a smirk on his face. I laughed and shook my head. "No, I guess not." Jason looked me in the eyes and smiled, and suddenly he slipped and landed right on his butt, taking me down with him.

We both busted into laughter again, while trying to get up. Every time I tried to stand he would fall back down and vice versa. Finally, Jason managed to get up and then picked me up. I was leaning against his chest for support because I was laughing so hard. I couldn't remember the last time I had such a fun time with someone, let alone a boy.

By now we were both soaking wet and freezing cold. "Would you like to head on to our next activity?" Jason asked me. I smiled, "there's more?" I asked excitedly. He looked at me like I had 3 heads. "Of course there's more! You don't think I could end the day with only one activity, do ya?" I laughed. "Guess not."

Jason held my hand as he helped me get off the ice. I smiled, "Thank you, kind sir," this brought me back to the first day I met him. I was having such a great day. I never wanted it to end. We both went to turn in our skates and head on to what we were doing next.


	7. Chapter 7

Jason and I were in his car riding to our next "activity" as he liked to call it. We were both sitting in silence just enjoying the radio. The best part was it wasn't awkward silence. While I was lost deep in thought trying to figure out where we were going next, Jason slowly sneaked his hand over and gently laced his fingers in between mine. I looked over at him and smiled so I could reassure him that I was ok with it.

"So," I started, "you going to tell me where we're going now?" I heard him chuckle. "I didn't tell you where we were going the first time, why would I tell you now?"

I shrugged, "I dunno, just hoping you would." He glanced at me. "Well, you liked the first surprise, did you not?" I smiled thinking back on how sweet he was, and how much planning he must have done to do what he did. I smiled at him, "I loved it," I admitted.

My answer brought a huge smile to Jason's face. I glanced back out the window to see where we were going. We were going up a huge hill that looked sort of familiar to me. When we reached the top I knew exactly where we were.

We were at the Hill-Top Picnic side. Jason parked and we both got out of the car. I walked to the back of the car to meet Jason; he had opened up the trunk to get something out. When I got a better look, I saw that he was getting a picnic basket and blanket out.

"Do you need help carrying anything?" I asked him. I didn't want him to have to struggle with anything. He shook his head. "No, thank you. I got it all, don't worry." I was a little hesitant at first, but Jason managed to get everything together, and hold my hand while walking to the spot that we chose.

Jason put the basket down, so I took the chance to grab the blanket from him. He let me have it, so I laid it on the ground and sat down. Jason sat down next to me and pulled the basket over to us.

"I hope you like PB&J sandwiches," Jason told me grinning. I laughed quietly. "Sounds perfect." It was now dark, and Jason and I were sitting on the blanket, eating our sandwiches just looking up at the stars.

"Jason," I started. He looked at me, "yes, Alana?"

I reached over and took his hand. "Thank you for such a wonderful evening. Everything has been so great. No one has ever done anything like this for me, and I just want to you know this means the world to me." Jason smiled and gently squeezed my hand.

"Alana, I know we haven't known each other very long, but I can honestly say that you are one of the sweetest people I have ever met. I'm sorry that you have not been treated the way you should have been in the past, but I promise that as long as I'm here, I'll treat you the way you deserve to be treated." My eyes started to water. Oh no, this is the second time tonight that this boy has almost made me cry.

Jason must have noticed my tearing up because he leaned closer to me, putting his arm around my shoulders. I sniffled a little, trying to calm myself. "Can I ask you something?" I looked up at Jason.

"You just did," he smiled at me. I looked in his eyes and smiled. "You can ask me anything," Jason told me with a sincere look in his eyes.

"Remember, when I ask this I do not mean for you to take offense to this at all," I started slowly. Jason just nodded. "Well…you _are_ a rock star…how can you be so…" I couldn't find the right words.

"…Down to earth?" Jason finished the question for me. I nodded. "Well…for starters, I have a wonderful family to always remind me where I came from. I also have a very strong faith in God, so I just try to stay true to my beliefs." I nodded, and smiled a little. Why could I not have met him earlier? Why did I have to date jerks? This was just too good to be true. It is…Soon he is going to be gone. This won't last.

With all these thoughts I just can't hold it in any longer. I started to cry.

"Hey, hey. Why are you crying?" Jason pulled me into his chest. I just shook my head. "Was it something I said?" This caused me to look up at him. "No, of course not…Well, actually…but, you didn't say anything wrong!" I told him before he could get the wrong impression.

"Then what is it?" he placed a finger under my chin and slowly lifted my head up to look me in the eyes. I sighed.

"You're just too good to be true. You're the most wonderful man I have ever met, and I'm scared."

"What? Why?" he sounded so concerned.

"I'm starting to really like you…and you're only going to leave soon," I finished in a whisper. He pulled back a little to place both of his arms on my shoulders.

"Alana, listen to me…I like you," he paused for a second, "yes, I like you, so I'm not just going to let you go. You've got to trust me. I will not just wake up one morning and leave you, do you understand me?"

I looked in his eyes. He wasn't lying to me. I just know it, I can tell. I nodded, and he pulled me back into his chest. "Jason?" I whispered. "Yes, Alana?"

"Please, don't hurt me." Jason gently placed his hand on my head, and ran his fingers thru my hair. "I promised you before that I wouldn't, and I keep my promises," he whispered into my ear. I nodded again and closed my eyes, resting against his chest.

We stayed like that for a good ten minutes, when finally he sat me up. "Hey, I have one last surprise for you." I laughed. Him and his surprises…

I watched him as he got up and ran to the car. I laid down on the blanket and closed my eyes, feeling very tired due to my emotional breakdown.

I felt Jason sit down next to me, so I sat up to see him holding his guitar. He smiled at me, and slowly began playing and singing a song. He looked me in the eyes the whole time he played, never once breaking eye contact. I gave him a smile when he was done playing.

"That was beautiful," I complimented. "…Not as beautiful as you," and with that he leaned over and softly kissed the corner of my lips.


	8. Chapter 8

I woke up the next morning to my radio going off. I jumped up, hit the alarm, and jumped in the shower. This was the first time in a long time that I was excited to go to work. I couldn't wait to see Jason again.

After the song last night, we laid and watched the stars a little bit longer, but once it got too cold we decided to head home. He gave me his jacket to wear while we walked back to the car. I remember him opening the door for me, and when I turned to face him to thank him; he kissed my cheek before I could say anything. We sat in the car listening to music that was on the radio while he drove me back to my apartment.

Once we arrived at my apartment, Jason got out of the car and walked me to my door. He told me I could keep his jacket, which I was excited about because it smelt like him. Before I walked into the house he gave me one last kiss on the cheek. I loved how he respected me enough not to kiss my lips on the first date.

Finally, I was ready to head to work. I walked out to my car to find a rose with a letter attached to it. I couldn't believe this. It couldn't be from Jason, could it?

I opened up the letter to read it:

"Good morning, M'lady,

I hope you had a wonderful time last night, because I sure did. I can't wait to see you again, and I hope you will do me the pleasure of another date soon. Anyways, I hope you have a great morning and hopefully I'll see you soon.

Love,

Your Prince Charming"

Oh my goodness!! I cannot believe he did that. The whole way to work I had a smile on my face. I couldn't wait to see Jason and thank him for the sweet letter and rose.

When I got to work, I hurried to my locker to put my things away. I was finally ready to start my shift when I heard someone call my name.

"Alana," I turned around to see Cindy with a stern look on her face. "Yes, Cindy?" I asked. I was getting a little worried; she never got mad at anyone. "Didn't I tell you not to bother the "special guests" that we have here?" She must be referring to Nate, Jason, and Shane.

"Um, I don't think I bothered them," I told her in a quiet voice. When I get nervous I lose the volume in my voice. "But if I did, I'm really sorry. They didn't tell me that I was bothering them," I was trying to defend myself. Then, all of a sudden, she started laughing.

"I'm just kidding," She told me with a smile. "I know you and Jason went on a date last night. How did it go?" I couldn't hold in my excitement. "He is the sweetest guy. We went ice skating, then we had a picnic, and he played his guitar for me," I told her while a hint of red started showing on my cheeks. She laughed and gave me a hug.

"It's nice to see that smile again," Cindy told me. I just looked down at the ground. She also had ideas about my past and why I do not trust men any more. "But, anyways! Go start your shift; you're going to be late!!" Cindy shooed me off, which I was grateful for.

I was heading to room 205 when I felt a little tug at my shirt. I looked behind me to see Colt holding on to my shirt. I smiled. "Hey little man, what's going on?" He just opened his arms for me. Colt never really talked much. That's why he and Holly made such great friends. Colt was the quiet one, while Holly would never stop talking. I picked him up and placed him on my side. "Where's Holly?" I asked him. He shrugged his shoulders. "I haven't seen her all morning," he told me in a quiet voice. "Hm, well how about this? I have someone who I need to check on first, but once I'm done, I'll come back and you and I will look for Holly. Sound good?" I asked him. He nodded, so I placed him back on the ground. "I'll be right back, little man," and with a pat on his head I was back on my way to check on Nick.

When I reached Nick's room, I knocked on the door. There was no answer. I slowly opened the door to see that the room was still dark. Little by little I crept into his room. I noticed that the only person in the room was Nate. This was weird, because usually he had someone in his room with him at all times. So either, the family took a break, or this was Shane's shift. I smiled to myself. Shane WOULD be the one to ditch his brother to go get some food.

I wasn't sure if Nate would want me to wake him up or not, but he did need the nutrition of a good breakfast so I decided to wake him. I walked over to his window and opened the curtains. I looked over at Nate to see him squint and open his eyes a little. "Wakey, Wakey…Eggs and Bakey," I sang to Nate. I heard him groan, while I walked over to his bedside. "Good morning, sunshine," I told him with a smile. Much to my surprise, he smiled back.

"Aren't we happy this morning," Nate commented with a grin on his face. I smiled back at him. "I'm happy every morning!" He shook his head. "No, I think you're happier today because someone shared a romantic night out with a certain brother of mine," he winked at me. I blushed. "If I were you, I wouldn't be teasing the girl who is going to get your breakfast," I winked back at Nate. This sobered him up a little. "Ok, ok! Don't do anything hasty now," his statement caused me laugh, so I lost the threatening tone in my voice.

"What would you like to eat this morning?" I asked him, while cleaning up the room a little. He shrugged. "I dunno, anything sounds good," he told me. "Alright. Are you going to be okay here by yourself?" I asked.

"Yeah, people are going to be here later, it's just we're supposed to be taking a break, but it's hard for everyone else because they're waiting on me hand and foot. I told them to sleep in this morning and not worry about me. I'll be fine for a couple of hours, and besides, I still have your iPod," he held it up to show me. "You have a lot of good music in here."

I smiled, "Thanks. Glad it's keeping you entertained, but is there anything else I could get you? I would be bored staying in bed this whole time." He thought for a minute. "Uh…you don't happen to have a guitar do you?" he asked with a hopeful look on his face. I laughed. "Are you serious?" I questioned him. As soon as those words came out of my mouth, his face fell.

Oh no. I can't stand to see someone like this. I sighed. "Nate, I will find you a guitar. Give me 2 hours, at most," I told him with a smile. Automatically his face lit up. "…and if it's not too much trouble, could I have a notepad, or some kind of paper?" Nate asked.

"It's no trouble at all," I told him, "I'll be ASAP with food, for sure…if I bring back the rest it will be by luck," Nate just laughed at me. "Thank you so much, Alana," he told me sincerely. I nodded and headed out the door.

On my way to get Nate some food, I stopped back in the play room to check up on Colt. I noticed that Holly was in there with Colt attached at the hip. I walked in. "Hey Colt, I see you found miss Holly Dolly," she loved when I called her that. She busted into giggles. "Well, I just wanted to check in. I got some stuff I need to do but I'll try to come back later," and with that I gave them both a quick hug. Before leaving, I noticed a guitar over on one of the shelves. The workers left if there for sing-a-long time. I went to get it. "Hey Holly, if someone is looking for this later tell them that Alana got it and if they have any questions just to talk to Cindy," Holly just nodded.

I strapped the guitar around me, and was off to the café again. Aw crap. I just remembered I have a notebook in my purse. I'll come back and get it after I get Nate his food. Finally, I got Nick's food and was on my way back to his room.

When I reached his room, I knocked on the door again. "Come in!" I heard Nate yell. He smiled when I opened the door and I noticed he was still by himself. I sighed, kinda wishing Jason would be the one to open the door. Oh well, I'll see him later.

I sat the tray down on Nate's lap, and then took off the guitar. I saw his face light up. "You found a guitar!!" he exclaimed excitedly. "And I have a notebook in my purse, I just have to go down to the lockers to get it."

When I left, Nate was happily stuffing his face. I'm so glad I leave stuff in my purse all the time or else I wouldn't have my book. I got down to the lockers, got my book, and headed out real fast. On my way I made another pit stop in the play area. This time, much to my surprise I found two older boys playing hide-and-go-seek with a couple of the younger children. When I took a closer look, I noticed that it was Shane and Jason. They were looking for a place to hide, while Colt was counting.

I watched as Shane hid under a desk and Jason behind a curtain. I decided that I wanted in on this, so I snuck over to where Colt was. "Hey Colt, can I play?" I asked him, and he just nodded. "Can I be on your team?" I whispered to him. He nodded again with a smile on his face. I could tell he was excited. We went to look for people, but I let Colt find some kids before I made my move. I crept around the desk and popped out, scaring Shane making him jump so he hit his head on the desk. I tried to hold in my laughter and soon put a finger over my lips, motioning for Shane to be quiet so I could get Jason.

I snuck over to where Jason was hiding (which was pretty obvious), and pulled back the curtains. "Got you!" Colt screamed at Jason. I was shocked. Colt was never that loud, but I loved it. He was opening up, and that made me so happy. Once the shock wore off I jumped in front of Jason. "We got you!" I screamed then gave Colt a high five. Colt jumped on Jason, which shocked me even more. Colt was always so shy around people, but somehow Jason and Shane made him open up. I watched them as Jason picked up Colt.

"We've become pretty good friends, haven't we, Colt?" Shane asked Colt. He nodded with a smile on his face. Even though Shane was talking, I couldn't take my eyes off Colt and Jason. Jason was just so good with Colt and that made me tremendously happy. Suddenly I remembered that Nate was probably waiting for the notebook.

"I'm sorry guys, I wish I could stay and play, but I need to get back to Nate," I told them apologetically. "Nah, he'll be fine," Shane commented. I laughed. "I'm not sure if you know this, Shane, but I am kind of working. As in, this is a JOB," I informed him.

As I was walking back to Nate's room, someone snuck up behind me and put their hands over my eyes. I had a feeling it was Jason, so I decided to play a little joke.

"Shane…Not while your brother's around! He might see!" Suddenly the hands fell and I quickly turned around to see a very angry looking Jason. "Aw Jase, I was just playin'," as I said this Jason started to walk away. Oh no, I must have really hurt his feelings, so I ran after him. When I reached him I put my hand on his back and gently rubbed his back. This was the first time that I touched HIM first. This caused him to stop walking away and turn around. I pouted, "I'm sorry, Jason. It was just a joke. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I would never want to hurt you," I finished with a whisper. As soon as my last sentence was finished, Jason took me in his arms and gave me a hug.

"It's alright," he whispered, "I'm happy that you came after me. Means you must see something there," he finished with a smile. This caused me to blush and look down at the floor. Then I remembered the rose this morning.

"You know," I started with a smile "This morning someone left me the cutest letter, along with a beautiful red rose," I told Jason. He glared. "I AM going to have to beat up my brother!" What??? I was so confused. Jason didn't leave me that letter? Tears started to well up in my eyes. I feel so stupid. Of course Jason wouldn't have done that for me…I just looked down at the floor.

"Oh no!" I heard Jason exclaim. "Alana, it _was_ me. I guess we're both bad with jokes," he released an awkward chuckle. I looked up at him, and saw his face suddenly changed to horror. "I made you cry!" he pulled me into his arms, so I was resting against his chest. I could feel him gently rubbing my back. "Alana, I am so sorry. Please, please forgive me?" he pulled back to look me in the eyes. I smiled at him. The look in his eyes, it felt like something came over me, like I needed to comfort him. I placed my hand one of his cheeks and kissed the other. When I pulled back, I saw him smile and blush.

It looked like Jason was about to place his hand on my cheek, but before he could we heard someone clear their throat behind us.

"Hellooooo? We have a sick brother who needs taking care of…" Shane commented. I sighed. Leave to him to ruin the moment. I turned away from Shane to give Jason one last kiss on the cheek before I had to leave to go back to Nate's room. Before I could walk off though, Jason took my notebook and grabbed one of my hands.

"A beautiful lady such as you deserves an escort, wherever she goes," Jason told me while we walked to his brother's room. I just laughed, happy to have his company.


	9. Chapter 9

Before we opened the door I could hear the soft playing of a guitar. I looked at Jason and whispered "Should we go in?" He looked puzzled and shrugged. As soon as I knocked on the door the playing stopped. "Come in!" we heard from the other side of the door.

I walked inside first, "Not only did I find you a notebook; I found you two of the best brothers anyone could ever ask for! How great am I?" I jokingly asked Nate as I handed him the notebook. He just laughed. I didn't want to say anything to Shane or Jason, but Nate was looking rather pale. I think I'll tell Cindy the next chance I get. I mean, I'm not the medical student or anything, but I know when someone isn't feeling well. I was too busy lost in my thoughts to realize Shane and Jason walked up to my sides and both put their arms around my neck.

"And we brought you the best care-giver in the entire hospital!" Shane exclaimed. I laughed, but Jason looked insulted. "Not the best in the hospital, the best in the entire world!" I blushed a little. "Aw, Nate aren't they just the cutest couple ever?" Shane asked his brother. I watched Nate as he answered, "Yeah, they're cute," he said faintly as he laid back in his bed. This concerned me even more.

I stepped closer to Nate's bed and gently placed my hand on his forehead. He was burning up! "Nate, how are you feeling?" I asked trying to remain calm. He shrugged, "One minute I feel cold, the next I'm hot. Kinda feeling tired," he finished quietly. He closed his eyes and rested. I turned around to grab Shane and Jason's arms and take them outside the room.

"Guys, can you go in there and stay with your brother until a nurse gets here?" I asked still trying to keep a very calm tone to my voice, but I think Jason saw something in my face that gave me away. "Why? What's wrong with Nate?" he asked sounding concerned. "Well, I'm not doctor, but I do think he has a fever. Could turn out to be a cold, but I'm not sure. I just want to get someone in there to check on him, that's all. Don't worry," I finished, placing my hand on his arm to gently stroke it.

Shane noticed the comfort I was giving to his brother. "Hey, I'm concerned too!" he whined like a little kid. I smiled at him, and then leaned in to give him a hug. He seemed to be shocked at first but then hugged me back. "Ok guys, now go in there and stay with him until I can get someone back here," they nodded, but Jason didn't leave until giving me a hug first. "Hey, I couldn't leave knowing the fact that my brother got a hug, but I didn't," he whispered in my ear while hugging me. I laughed and told him good-bye then went to find a nurse.

I found a nurse and told her to go check on my patient. She was very nice and told me she'd go right away. I was heading on my way back to the play area to check on Colt and Holly when suddenly I just felt so tired. The volunteers are allowed a break time so I decided this might be a good time to go rest for a minute or two.

I went into the volunteer lounge room and sat down on the couch. Ehhh, I feel horrible. It feels like a million degrees in here and I feel sort of dizzy. Oh great, I know this feeling…this is how I feel before I faint. If I can make it to the bathroom before I pass out, I can wash my face and maybe the feeling will go away.

I got up from the couch only to feel worse. I unsteadily walked to the bathroom, and leaned against the sink while I tried to wash my face off. The feeling didn't stop, and now it's progressed to a ringing in my ear. I couldn't support myself any longer, so I slide down to the sit in the floor. Finally the last symptom before passing out came…the blurred vision. The last thing I remember before I lost consciousness was a sharp pain in my head.


	10. Chapter 10

Jason's POV

I need to calm down; panicking will not help the situation. So…Alana has been missing for 2 hours and the last person who saw her was the nurse who was in here taking care of Nate earlier. I'm so mad…not mad at Alana though, I'm mad because they won't let me or Shane go look for her. We're supposed to be "resting" and if the wrong person saw us and informed the media, we'd have to leave, so mom says "it's for the best." Yeah, ok. Something could have happened to the girl I'm starting to fall for, and I can't even freaking help look for her?! How messed up is that? It's just not fair. Even if I put on my hat and shades, they still won't let me. I feel like I'm a prisoner in this freaking hospital room, and I'm dying to get out.

While I was lost in my thoughts, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked over to see Shane. "Hey man," I just nodded to inform him that I heard what he said. "You know she's most likely ok. This is probably some misunderstanding. Like maybe she had a family emergency or something and had to leave before telling anyone," Shane tried to console me. I was grateful for what he was trying to do, but honestly it was only making me angrier. Right before I was about to bite Shane's head off, Cindy came in our room. I stood up immediately, "Did you find her?" I asked. She nodded.

"Yes, we did find Alana," Cindy informed us. "Well, where was she? What happened?" I questioned her. "We found her passed out in the bathroom floor in the volunteer lounge. Her face was damp, so I'm guessing she went to wash her face and she fainted. We have her resting in a bed upstairs, and we are doing some blood work to see if it was due to health reasons or not."

"What room is she in?" I asked concerned. Cindy gave me a puzzled look; "Jason, I don't think…" she started. Before she could finish her sentence, I interrupted, "No! Please, I need to go see her," I almost begged. She sighed. "Alright. Alana is in room 311, but please, if you both want to visit her please do it one at a time," Cindy requested.

Shane put his hand on my back, "Well, what you waiting for dude? Go see her," I looked at my brother to see he had a smile on his face. I gave my brother a hug before leaving, and he went back over to Nate's bedside. Then like a flash, I was out the door.

I walked in to Alana's room to see her head bandaged up, and an I.V. stuck in her arm. Seeing her so fragile and weak made me want to cry. I noticed she was so pale, and still unconscious, so I walked over to her bedside, pulled up a chair, and grabbed her hand.

I gently rubbed her hand with my thumb as I whispered to her, "Hey, 'Lana. It's me," I started, trying to find the words to say, "If you can hear me, I really want you to wake up now. My family is so worried about you…I'm worried about you. Even though we just met not too long ago, you mean the world to me. I had the best time on our date last night. If I could have changed one thing though, I would have ended it with a different kind of kiss," I whispered softly in her ear. This is when I decided to lean up and very lightly kiss her lips. I didn't get the response I was hoping for. I was hoping that she would wake up right when our lips touched, put her arms around my neck, and kiss me back. Instead, she just continued to lay there, unconscious, looking frail and weak, like she needed me by her side to protect her. All afternoon I stayed by her side, determined to be by her side when she woke up.

Alana's POV

I groaned quietly and stretched feeling as if I had just woken up from a long nap. I noticed when moved my arm I felt something connected to me. I opened my eyes and looked down to see an I.V. in my arm, and then I realized where I was. I was in a hospital room, and it was dark outside…that's weird. Then suddenly I felt a sharp pain in my head. "Oww," I groaned again. I reached up to feel bandages on my head. What happened to me?

"Alana!" I heard someone exclaim in excitement. "You're awake!" I looked to see Jason getting up from a chair that wasn't too far from my bed. He rushed to my side. "Are you alright? How are you feeling?" he asked with a concerned expression on his face. I smiled at him, "I'm alright, how are you?" He looked shocked.

"You're the one who passed out and hit their head, and you're asking me how I am doing?" Wait…What? Then it all came back to me, the dizziness, the bathroom, trying to wash my face, the sharp pain in my head. I looked back up at Jason, and then scooted over in my bed so he could sit next to me. "Please, sit," I asked him. He obliged, and sat down next to me.

"I was so worried about you, why didn't you tell anyone you weren't feeling well?" I had to think hard to remember on how this all happened, but it came back to me. "Well, I was feeling fine, until after I sent that nurse to check on your brother, then it all just sort of hit me at once," I told him. While I was talking, his hand had found its way down to mine. I smiled at him and gently squeezed his hand. "So, how long have I been in here?"

He shrugged. "A couple of hours, you were sent in here sometime this afternoon, and now it's almost morning," after he told me this, I noticed he looked very tired.

"And Jason, how long have you been here?" I asked hoping I wasn't going to get the answer that I expected. "As soon as they told me what room you were in," I sighed. He's been here all day. That's why he looks so tired. Although, he is so sweet for staying here with me, but he needs rest too.

"Jason, now that you know that I'm ok, please go rest, you look like you could fall asleep on your feet," I said. He shook his head no. "Do you know how much begging it took to get Cindy to let me stay here all night?" That's right, Cindy doesn't like it too much when company stays with a patient over night. He must have really worked hard to get to stay with me. OK then, we'll compromise. "Jason, that couch chair against the wall will pull out into a bed. There are blankets in the closet, please get them and get some rest," I asked him while gently rubbing my hand up and down his bicep. He looked like he was thinking something over, then he spoke, "I will under one condition," oh no…

"What is it?" I asked sort of nervous. "Last night on our date I wanted to give you something, but I was afraid you would think less of a gentleman of me," he started, but before he could finish I interrupted him, "Jason, you just spent half the day and all night sitting in a hospital room waiting for me to wake up…right now there are very little things you could do to make me think less of you," I told him. This just seemed to make him smile. "Good, then you won't mind when I do this," once he was done with his sentence, he leaned in and every so softly kissed my lips.


	11. Chapter 11

I woke up very early in the morning to see Jason asleep on the pull-out-bed. I didn't want to wake him just yet, so I laid in bed thinking about our first kiss last night. After the kiss, he finally agreed to go to bed, but of course, not until he got one last good night kiss from me. I sighed thinking about how happy I am with him. I still haven't told him about my past relationship yet…I will when I think the time is right. Just hasn't felt right yet, and plus all he _really_ needs to know is that I was hurt very badly, and I think he understands that already.

I was starting to get bored waiting for him to wake up, so I grabbed an empty plastic cup off the nightstand next to my bed, and chunked it at Jason. As soon as it hit him, he jumped awake with a loud snore. I couldn't help but laugh at how cute he was.

It seemed as soon as he heard my giggle he smiled and rushed over to my bedside. I scooted over again to let him sit beside me on my bed like he did last night.

"Good morning, M'lady," he whispered as he gently stroked my cheek. I could feel my cheeks burning slightly, "Good morning," I whispered back to him.

"How are you feeling today?" he asked me. I smiled at him, "I feel a whole lot better than yesterday." He continued to stroke my cheek very lightly, "Good, I'm glad."

We sat there in silence for a couple minutes just relaxing and waking up, but then I remembered Nate. "How is Nate doing? What happened with his fever?" I looked up at Jason.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. It turns out that he was catching a cold, and the doctors said that it was a good thing that it was caught when it was, or it could have been pretty bad due to the vulnerable condition he is in already," Jason looked down at me with what looked like sadness in his eyes, "Thank you for taking care of my baby brother," he whispered in my ear. I wanted to tell him something, anything, but I couldn't. I couldn't speak…he looked as if he were about to cry, and I didn't know how to react to that. I gently rubbed his arm, "Jason, are you ok?" I whispered.

I could have sworn I saw him wipe a tear from his eye. He sighed, "I don't know. I want Nate to get better. I want him to be able to eat whatever he wants, and not worry about his blood sugar. I want our family to be able to tour without worrying that he might need to be hospitalized. I don't want him to have to be cooped up in a hospital for days. It's not fair to him," his voice grew angrier as he spoke, which in all honesty sort of frightened me. I tend to get nervous around angry men…

He sighed again, and seemed to calm down. "But there's nothing I can do," he whispered, sounding defeated.

"That's not true. You can be there for him, and that's what he needs. He needs his big brother to be by his side, telling him that he's going to be fine, and that you'll always be there for him. That is what you can do. As a matter of fact, why don't you go wake him up, since _I_ don't have the pleasure to do so this morning," he smiled while I talked, "When you wake him up, you should pull back the curtains to his windows, and yell 'Good Morning, Sunshine,' and tell him that's from me!" I told Jason excitedly.

He laughed when I was done talking, I'm guessing at how easily excitable I am, but then became serious again, "I would go do that, but I don't want to leave you alone," he told me. I shook my head, "No, go see him. I'll be fine for a couple of hours," I insisted.

He sighed defeated. "Fine, but I'm sending Shane in here," I laughed at this.

"Yeah, ok. Like he's even awake right now," Jason laughed at my statement, knowing that it was most likely true.

"You're probably right, but he'll be in here soon, I promise you that," he said with a determined sound in his voice. Jason leaned down to kiss my forehead, "I'll be back soon, M'lady," he whispered into my ear. I smiled at him before he walked out the door, "I'll miss you, my Prince Charming."

It had been about 30 minutes since Jason left my room to go be with Nate. I was starting to doubt that Shane was going to come visit me, but if he didn't I would be ok. Just as soon as I was thinking that, a sleepy looking Shane stumbled into my room grumbling about I'm guessing how early it was, and went straight to the bed that was already pulled out. I remembered the first day I met him and how he had me locked out of Nate's room…it was time for some payback.

"Shaneeee," I whined, "come keep me company," this got his attention but he didn't move. "Shaneyyy Poo," I whined louder, "I'm boreddddd," he still didn't move from the bed. I tried not to smile, "Shane Gray, if you do not come over here and talk to me, I'm going to sing so loud and out of tune that you'll want to cut out my vocal cords and sow my mouth shut," I told him very seriously. Finally, I got some movement. He groaned and shuffled his way over to my bed.

"Well, hello there sunshine!" I greeted him with a teeth-baring smile. He glared at me, "move over," he demanded. I laughed and scooted over so he could sit next to me. He laid his head down on my bed and started to fall asleep. "Shane Gray!" I yelled, he jumped back up, and placed his index finger over my lips. "Sleep now, talk later," he said barely conscious. I laughed again, and decided to be nice. "Alright Shane, if you want to go back to sleep you can go lay down on the bed over there," I told. He shook his head, "No because if I go to sleep and Jason comes in and sees me not keeping you company, I'm gonna be in trouble," he told me sounding very grumpy.

Just as I was about to say something, someone barged in my room, with Cindy on their tail. "I don't care who's in here with her, I'm going to see my friend!" I heard the voice yell. Finally, I got to see who it was. It was my friend Sherry! We went to high school together, but weren't really that good of friends until the end of senior year. Now we're like best friends, plus besides Carolyn, Sherry and her fiancé Sam are all I have left. Another thing about Sherry is that she is 8 and half months pregnant with her first baby, and could be due any day now.

"Cindy, let her in please," I asked as nicely as I could, "fine, but I'll be back later," Cindy told me and then left to let Sherry come in.

Before she walked over to my bed she stopped, "'Lana, who is that in your bed?" she asked sounding a little scared. Oh crap! I forgot that Shane was still in my bed, but he was asleep by now.

I laughed at Sherry's face, "It's ok, he's just a friend," I told her. She scooted a chair closer to my bedside. "What happened to you?! I was so worried when you didn't answer my phone calls," I looked down sort of ashamed. "I would have called you, but when I woke up last night you would have been long lost in dreamland. Anyways, I just fainted and they're keeping me here probably until this afternoon, then they might let me go," while I was speaking though, I noticed Sherry look over at Shane. Then her face became shocked. Oh crap, I bet she recognizes him. "Alana," she whispered, "do you know who is sitting next to you?" I laughed a little. "Yes, I do. He's supposed to be keeping me company, but he's too lazy to keep his eyes open," I rolled my eyes, but kept a smirk on my face so she knew it was all in good fun.

I noticed while we were talking that she couldn't take her eyes off Shane. I sighed, I was going to have to tell her…"Sherry," I started out slowly, "please, if he wakes while you're here, don't make a scene. He's on vacation…sort of…so don't be like one of those groupies or anything…please," I whispered to her. She looked at me and sighed, "Anything for you, 'Lana," she told me with a smile, "but don't worry. I need to leave now so I can get to work on time."

I glared at her. "Sherry! You are not supposed to be working at all right now!" She laughed and patted my shoulder, "I'm just joking, I'm gonna go home and just do some house work, getting the baby's room ready," I nodded. "Just don't work too hard," I told her sincerely. "You know I won't, be safe from now on and answer my phone calls! Oh yeah, and when you can, get me an autograph from him," she pointed at Shane and then was out the door. I just chuckled a little and was thinking about how great my friends are, and that was my last thought before I fell asleep…next to Shane.


	12. Chapter 12

Jason's POV

I had just spent the last couple of hours with Nate. I was really glad I did, he finally told me how he was actually feeling. How he was miserable here in this hospital, and how he felt bad for making us all be here as well. We just sat there, bonded, and talked. I really enjoyed it and was glad that Alana talked me in to doing it. Now I was heading back to Alana's room to check up on her. Shane hasn't come back to the room so he must still be with her.

I walked in to see my brother sleeping next to the girl I was starting to fall for, and suddenly a rush of anger came over me. _I_ didn't get to sleep beside her last night. She didn't even ask me to lie down beside her. I sighed…

It's always like this. Shane gets _all_ the girls, every time I start to develop feelings for someone, she falls for Shane. Don't get me wrong, I love my brother, but apparently so does every girl on this planet.

I cleared my throat loudly hoping to get some attention, and to my surprise, it worked. Both Alana and Shane awoke with a start. Shane just sat up and rubbed his eyes, while as soon as Alana woke up her eyes landed right on me.

Alana's POV

I jumped awake from hearing a loud throat clearing. Once my vision came into focus I saw a very angry looking Jason staring at me and Shane. Then I realized what he was staring at. Shane and I fell asleep next to one another in my bed. Oh no. He must be furious with me. We stared at each other for what seemed like hours, then I started, "Jason," but before I could say anything else he quickly walked out the room, slamming the door on his way.

Shane was still very much out of it, but I figured I could try. "Shane, wake up!" I shook him, but he still wouldn't get up. "Er!!!" I groaned. I was going to have to get out of bed. I will not just let Jason walk out on me like that. He didn't even ask what happened. How dare he just assume something such as me wanting to be with Shane? I slowly sat up in my bed, trying not to make any sudden movements that could cause me to go lightheaded. Then I slowly stood up, leaning against the table for a little support. Thank God they unhooked me from the IV because that would have sucked to carry that thing around.

I hurried as quickly as I could out the door and started towards Nate's room (it was the only place I think he would go). While walking, I finally saw Jason, but I didn't think I would catch him before he got on the elevator, so I decided to call out to him, "Jason!" my voice came out very weak and a little hoarse. Crap, that wasn't a good idea. I started to feel a little dizzy and lightheaded, but it did get Jason's attention, so I was happy. He looked back at me, his face red with anger. This only caused me to become more upset. I started to feel a lot weaker and I knew I wouldn't be able to stand much longer. Jason must have noticed that I wasn't feeling well because I could see his facial expression become slightly softer. I walked over to him.

"Jason, you didn't even let me explain," I started trying to calm him down, but it backfired. "Explain?! You were sleeping next to my brother in your bed. What is there to explain?" I could feel the tears coming. I can't take someone yelling at me. I looked away from him and whispered, "You don't know anything," and turned to walk away.

I struggled with the weight of my own body while trying to walk, but suddenly I felt an arm wrap around my shoulders. The arm spun me around, "Well then, tell your side of the story," Jason told me rudely. I shook my head and finally lost all my body strength and collapsed, but before I could hit the floor Jason caught me in his strong arms.

"Alana!" Jason exclaimed while gently tapping my cheek. I was conscious but I couldn't seem to find my voice to speak. "Are you ok?! What's wrong?!" Jason kept asking me questions, but I didn't have the strength to answer. I was struggling to keep my eyes open.

Jason swooped me up into his arms and I could feel him carrying me somewhere. He gently supported my head with his arm as he carried me bridal style. "I need some help!" I heard him exclaim before I lost consciousness involuntarily again for the second time this week.


	13. Chapter 13

Jason's POV

I did this to her. It was me. I'm the reason she's back here in this bed. I'm the reason why I can't look her in those beautiful blue eyes and tell her I'm sorry. I moved over to Alana's bed, and sat down next her. I gently grabbed her hand, which once again was punchered by an I.V. I sighed and rested my head close to hers.

"Alana," I whispered, "I'm sorry. Please wake up, I'm so sorry. I don't care if you like Shane, or if you like me. I never should have treated you the way I did, especially when you're in such a fragile condition," I finished tearing up slightly. I sniffled then gently wiped some hair away from her face, and to my surprise she woke up.

Alana's POV

I slowly started to come to when I could hear someone talking to me. It was Jason, and it sounded like he was apologizing. I decided to keep my eyes closed until he was done. I wanted to hear what he had to say. "…I'm so sorry. I don't care if you like Shane or if you like me…" How could he possibly think that I like Shane? Ok, so we accidently fell asleep. Jason, it's _you _who I like, not your brother. It's _you _who I want to be with. It's _you _who I am falling for. Oh no. I finally admitted it. I am falling for Jason Gray.

Finally he was finished and I could have sworn he was crying, so I decided this was the time to speak up.

"Jason," I whispered softly (mostly because I couldn't get my voice to come out any louder). "Alana!" he exclaimed excitedly, "you're awake! I'm sorry, so sorry. Please forgive me. I didn't mean anything…"

"Jason!" I tried to get out as loud as I could, "I need to tell you something," I gently squeezed his hand with mine. As soon as I told him, he developed a worried look on his face.

"You like Shane don't you?" he asked me in one of the saddest voices I've ever heard. I shook my head, "No, no, no. That's the exact opposite of what I was going to say," I took a deep breath. Here it goes, "Jason…I've developed deep feelings for you, and well…I think I'm starting to fall for you," as I finished I looked away from him. I can't believe I just told him that. He probably thinks I'm a psycho or something now. Good job, Alana.

While I was mentally kicking myself, Jason reached down placing his hand on my cheek. As I looked up to see what he was doing his sweet lips softly landed upon mine and we shared a passionate yet gentle kiss. Once we broke away from one another Jason whispered against my lips, "I love you, Alana."

I leaned back a little to look him in the eyes. He wasn't lying to me, like people have before. I see the truth and love in his eyes. He truly loves me. We looked into each other's eyes until I slowly leaned in to him again and gave him another loving kiss.


	14. Chapter 14

Jason and I were just lying in my bed cuddling until I heard a faint knock at my door. I sat up, "Come in," I said as loud as I could, which still wasn't very loud. Cindy walked in, and stomped right over to my bed and glared at me and Jason. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!" she screamed and pointed her finger at me. I jumped as soon as I heard her raise her voice. Jason softly rubbed my arm to sooth me, it helped a little, but I've never seen Cindy yell at anyone before. "You're like a daughter to me, do you know how worried I was about you?!" I awkwardly fiddled with a ring on my finger so I wouldn't have to make eye contact with her.

"And you!" she turned to Jason, "how dare you attack her when she doesn't even have the strength to stand?!" Jason just looked down at the floor. I could tell he was very ashamed of himself. "Her blood sugar is un-Godly low, and you had her up chasing after you! What's the matter with you?!" This was starting to upset me, she's in here talking about Jason attacking me, but what is she doing? The same thing, the only difference is now I'm lying down.

"Cindy, please," I tried to calm her. "Jason was very upset, and he didn't know that I was so sick. Plus, it was my decision to go after him, he didn't make me go running after him," I told her hesitantly. I'm not use to talking back to people, especially my boss.

Cindy sighed. "I'm sorry, you're right, but don't you ever do that again. Understand me young lady? When you're in a hospital bed you are _never_ suppose to get out of it unless a nurse is here, and _you_ know that," she had the tone my mother use to have when she lectured me. I just nodded. Cindy leaned down and hugged me, "I was just worried 'Lana. Like I said, you're like a daughter to me, and I'm sorry Jason. I was angry, but if you ever see her out of this bed again without permission from someone, you better put her right back. Understand?" Jason just nodded, and mumbled, "Yes Ma'am."

Once Cindy was out the room Jason started to gently stroke my hair, but all I could do was sit there about think about Cindy yelling at me. I mean I know it was because she cares about me, but why did she have show it like that?

I sat there thinking about how everyone who has supposedly cared about me treated me in the past. I was lost so deep in thought that I didn't even notice when Jason tried to talk to me.

"'Lana, what's up? Are you ok?" Jason sounded so concerned. I sighed trying to suppress my urge to cry, but to no avail; I broke down crying.

Jason wrapped his arms tighter around me and pulled me closer. "Alana, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" I wanted to answer him, but I just couldn't. I was so upset I couldn't stop crying. Now might be the best time to tell him. I just hope he doesn't think differently about me. I took a deep shaky breath.

"Jason," I started out quietly, "I'm not use to being treated so nicely by guys," I sniffled as I spoke. "What do you mean, Alana?" Jason looked confused. I just took a deep breath trying to brace myself for his reaction.

"Jason, the reason I was so hesitant to go out with you at first and why I'm so nervous being with you is because of the way I've been treated before by men. My father left me and my mother when I was younger, my first boyfriend I've ever had cheated on me, and then my second and last boyfriend he use to…" I couldn't get the words out. I started sobbing and Jason pulled me into his chest. He gently stroked my hair and rocked me back and forth. "Shh, it's ok now Alana. I'm here and I would never do anything to upset you. I'm sorry that I walked out of here earlier. I shouldn't have done that, but as you can see I came back. I'll always come back for you, Alana" he whispered into my ear.

I cried harder, "I know, that's why I was so scared when you walked out of here. You treat me like a princess, and I don't want to lose such a great man," I whimpered. He stroked my back, "You won't lose me, 'Lana, I promise." Jason softly stroked my cheek and kissed my tears away.

I leaned back into Jason's chest and slowly fell asleep.


	15. Chapter 15

I woke up the next morning to see Jason sitting across the room reading a magazine. "Good morning," I managed to squeak out. Jason looked up with a smile on his face, walked over to my bed and kissed my forehead, "Good Morning."

"What are you reading?" I noticed that he brought the magazine over with him. He sat down on my bed next to me, and held up the magazine. I saw on the cover a picture of him and his brothers, "Just trying to catch up on the latest rumors about me and my brothers," he laughed. I smiled at him, "I'm sure that's always fun," I told him sarcastically. He laughed, "Yeah, it's amazing with what they come up with sometimes."

Awkward Silence…

"Alana," Jason started as he put the magazine to the side, "Can we talk?" Jason asked seriously. "We are talking, Jason," I told him.

"No, I mean…Can we talk about last night?"

"Oh…" I shrugged.

Jason leaned back in the bed and took me into his arms. "Alana, I won't ever mistreat you, I promise you that," I nodded. "I believe you, Jason. You not like anyone I've ever met," He smiled. "Good."

"Now I was wondering if I could ask you something," Jason said softly. I waited for him to continue.

"Well last night…you told me your last boyfriend…did something to you…well…" I could see he was struggling on how to ask it, so I figured I would just do it for him.

"You want to know what he did…" I said. Jason nodded. "If that is ok with you," he made sure to add on at the end. I took a deep breath.

"Jason, I'll tell you under one condition," I warned. "Anything," he said. "Please don't judge me. I don't want you to think less of me, but I don't want to lie about my past either," I told him sincerely.

He gently stroked my arm, "'Lana, there is no need to lie to me. I could never think less of you. We all have pasts, but I'll love you no matter what," and that was all I needed to hear.

I took another deep breath. I've never _willingly_ told anyone this before, not Cindy, not Sam, not Sherry, and not even Carolyn.

"Jason…my last boyfriend use to…abuse me," I finished in a whisper. I was looking down when I finished the sentence, but took a peek up at Jason to see his reaction. I noticed that his face was at first shock, then sympathy, then anger.

"What did he do to you?" Jason whispered. I shook my head and tried to hold back tears. I didn't want to tell him. I didn't want to tell him all the names that that asshole called me. I didn't want to tell him how that jerk use to hit me just because he felt like it, and most of all, I didn't want to tell Jason how emotionally unstapled the whole situation had made me.

I was snapped back into reality by Jason softly running his fingers thru my hair. "It's ok, Alana. You don't have to tell me if you're not ready," he told me with his soothing voice.

"No," I said confidently, "No, I have to tell you. I have to tell someone. I've been holding this in way too long…I started dating this guy named Cameron when I was in high school. A couple of months into our relationship he started calling me names. Then after the names came the yelling, the yelling progressed to pushing, the pushing became hitting…" my voice became shaky as I spoke. Tears slowly slid down my cheek, but I was determined to tell Jason my past.

"The only person who knows about this is my older brother, Tim. One day before I had put on makeup to cover anything up, my brother walked into my room and saw the bruising. He forced me to tell him what had happened. I even tried to lie, but he saw right through it…You see, Tim…well…he's a cop, and when he found out about Cameron he had him arrested," I stopped to look up at Jason to see if he was following along. He just nodded for me to keep going.

"After Cameron though, I had a lot of scars…not just physically, but emotionally too. I became very depressed and self loathing…I even…uh…" I didn't want to tell him. I'm too cowardly to tell him. He's gonna think I'm a freak…

"Go on, Alana," Jason whispered as he rubbed my back.

"I use to…harm myself…" I whispered. I could hear Jason inhale.

"But…Alana, you're so…nice and happy around here. I don't understand. You don't seem to be the kind of person who would do such a thing," Jason said in shock.

"I know, but I'm fine now. I have been since I graduated high school. Back then though, I was just so unhappy all of the time, and that was the only thing that seemed to numb the pain," I told him quietly as I pulled up the covers and showed him the faint scars on my arms.

He slowly and lightly ran his fingers over them, like he had to touch them to believe they were there. Then he slowly brought my arms up to his lips and softly kissed my long healed scars one-by-one.

I now let the tears flow freely as Jason pulled me into his chest. I loved it when he did that. I always felt so safe there, like nothing bad would ever happen to me as long as I were there. "Never again," Jason whispered to me. I looked up at him, "What?"

"Promise me, never again will you harm such a beautiful, loving, kind, gentle person such as yourself," he looked me in the eyes as he spoke.

"I promise," I told him sincerely. It seemed as soon as I said those words, someone burst into my room.

"Nate's getting released tomorrow!"


	16. Chapter 16

"Nate's getting released tomorrow!" Shane yelled as he burst through the door. He paused right in his tracks as he saw my tear stained cheeks and Jason gently caressing them.

"Oh, sorry…did I interrupt something?" he asked with a slight blush. I shook my head and cleared my throat.

"No, you're fine, but that's great!" I said trying cheer up, "I'm glad he's better," I smiled at Jason while gently rubbing his hand. A huge smile came across his face as he sat there still holding one of my hands.

"What are you waiting for? Go see him," I said with a smile as I gently pushed against him to get him out of my bed.

He leaned down and softly kissed my lips, "Will you be alright?" he asked suddenly serious again. I nodded with a smile.

"I'm a big girl; I can take care of myself…at least until you get back," I finished with a soft laugh. He smiled.

"I'll be back soon; would you like Shane to stay with you?" I rolled my eyes, but still kept a smile of my face. I didn't want him to get the wrong impression.

"Go. Have family time; I'll be fine, I promise," I said while once again pushing at his arm. Jason leaned down and softly kissed my forehead.

"I love you, Alana," he whispered before heading out the room, quickly followed by his brother.

**Jason's POV**

I quickly reached my brother's room to see my parents packing up all of Nate's things. I walked in and headed to Nate's bed. He was looking much better; the color of his skin was a much healthier pink now instead of that ghostly white, and it looked like he had gained a couple of pounds while he was here, so that was good too.

"Hey, little bro," I said while I messed up his hair, "I heard you were getting out of here soon?" I asked him. A huge smile came to his face, "Can't wait." That was the happiest I've heard him in I don't know how long.

"Can't wait to get back home," he said with a sigh. Back home? Did he mean to New Jersey? Surely not; I was promised a vacation and I assumed it would be here…with Alana.

"What do you mean 'back home'?" I asked Nate hesitantly. I could feel a knot tighten in my stomach.

"Shane not tells you? We're going home to New Jersey to rest up for a couple of months before we start a tour again," I could feel my heart sink.

"Mom! Dad! I thought we were going to stay here for our vacation?" I asked trying to hide the panic in my voice.

"Oh honey, I know you're going to miss your little girlfriend, but I think it's what would be best for your brother. If he's so sick he really shouldn't be so far from home," my mother tried to comfort me. How would I break this to Alana when I just promised her I would never leave her? Surely she knew I'd have to leave sometime…

"But Nate's _not _sick anymore, hence them releasing him from the hospital," I was trying my best to respect my mother, but who could blame me? I was going to have to leave my girlfriend when we just started getting serious, and I don't know when I'd see her again.

"Jason, don't talk to your mother that way," my father corrected my behavior. I sighed and nodded.

"Sorry, mom," I mumbled. She shook her head, "Honey, I know you're upset, but right now this is what's best. I'm sorry it has to be like this, but maybe you should go spend as much time with her now as you can…before you have to leave," she finished quietly.

I took a deep breath as I walked out of the room and slowly made my way back to Alana.

I have no idea how I will be able to explain this to her…How do you tell the person you love that you have to leave them and you don't know when is the next time you'll be together again…


	17. Chapter 17

I was slowly drifting in and out of sleep as I laid there bored in my hospital bed. I couldn't wait for Jason to get back and save me from my boredom. As I was just on the verge of sleep, I heard a knock at my door. "Come in," I said as I sat up. Cindy walked in.

"How you feeling?" she asked me kindly as she walked over to my bed. I smiled.

"Much better; are you in here to tell me that I can get out of this bed now?" I asked, my voice willed with optimism. She gave me the sympathy smile that I knew all too well; I grimaced.

"Aw honey, don't worry; today will be your last day cooped up in this bed. Tomorrow you'll be able to go home for awhile and everything will be back to normal," she said, almost as if she was trying to hint at something, but I just let it slide for the moment.

"Good; I hate just sitting here all day. If it wasn't for Jason I think I'd go mad," I complained; it was now her turn to grimace.

"Honey, you know I'll always be here for you…no matter what?" she asked as she sat down on my bed next to me. I could only smile at her.

"Of course I know that Cindy," I gently patted her hand. Cindy sat there and talked with me for a couple more minutes until we heard a knock at our door.

"Come in," I called, only to see a worried looking Jason walk in to my room. I watched as he looked at Cindy and then at me. She gave him a slight nod before saying, "I think I'll give you two some privacy," and she left the room.

"Are you ok, Jason? You don't look very well," I commented as he walked over to my bed and gently sat down next to me.

"No, Alana, I'm not ok," he said as he softly took my hand. I began to feel sick. I had no idea what he was going to tell me, but I knew it wasn't good.

"What's wrong?" I could barely mumble out as I tried to look into his eyes; he just avoided my eye contact.

"Alana," he took a deep breath, "my family and I…we're…going back home…tomorrow," he finished in a whisper so soft that I had to strain to hear him. Not once did he look me in the eyes…he didn't even look at my face.

How could he? He promised he wouldn't do this; he promised he wouldn't make me fall for him and then just leave me. He promised he just wouldn't up and leave…

I could feel the tears burn my eyes as I struggled to find my voice.

"Get out," I whispered harshly as the tears started to fall. I couldn't stand this…I didn't want to see him, and if he was just willing to give up on me so easily…on us…then fine. Let him leave, and let him leave _now_.

"What?! Alana, you have to believe me; this isn't my choice. My family is going back home because Nate is sick. He needs to be at home with our family physician, so he can be properly taken care of," Jason tried to explain to me.

"Oh, so now you aren't just getting up and leaving me, like you promised you _wouldn't_, but you're going to sit here and insult the hospital that I work at? Is my hospital not good enough for millionaire rock stars? Fine then, just go," I couldn't believe what I was saying. I've never told off a guy like this before, especially one that I had come to love so much, but I just couldn't stand it. He was breaking my heart in two…my heart that had been hurt so many times before…I thought he was different.

"Alana," he almost begged as he gently placed his hands on each side of my face, "please listen to me. I don't want to leave you. I don't want to leave the girl that I love with all my heart, but my family is going…and I have to go with them," he said sadly.

I swatted his hands away and pushed against his body to get him off my bed.

"Get out, Jason," I demanded as the tears fell harder, but he wouldn't budge.

"No," he stated sternly as he tried to grab my hands. He successfully succeeded in grabbing one of my wrists, which only caused me to become more upset. It only reminded me of the many times my ex had done the exact same thing, right before he hit me. I was getting so angry…so furious…I did something I never thought I'd do…I smacked him.

I couldn't help but break down into sobs as I looked up at Jason's horror-struck face. I could see behind his eyes, not anger towards me, but only sadness.

"Just go now," I whimpered as I rolled over in my bed facing away from him. I could faintly hear his footsteps as he headed towards the exit. Finally, I heard the sound that confirmed my heartbreak...the slam of my hospital room door.


	18. Chapter 18

I laid in bed for the rest of the day after Jason had left my room. I couldn't do anything but cry; I couldn't sleep, eat, read, or listen to my iPod that Nate had returned a couple days ago. Everything reminded me of Jason. Every time I closed my eyes all I could see was his face, every magazine I picked up had pictures of him and his brothers, and every song on my iPod just reminded me of him.

It wasn't long until I heard a knock at my door. My breath got stuck in my throat; I only wanted it to be Jason so I could apologize for the way I acted. I felt horrible for hitting him, but I panicked and I was just so angry at him.

The door slowly opened as I held my breath. The first thing I saw was blonde hair as I let out a disappointed sigh as Cindy entered the room. She slowly walked over to my bed and saw my bloodshot eyes. She gently ran her hand down my hair.

"Oh honey, I'm so sorry," she whispered. That explains the way she was talking to me earlier before Jason had come back…she knew he was leaving me. If I wouldn't have been so exhausted from crying I would have been furious at her.

"You knew," was all I could manage to get out. I glanced up at her, trying to fight the wave of new tears I could feel coming on.

"Alana, I'm sorry but it wasn't my place to tell you," she said as she sat down next to me. I scooted away.

"You could have given me a warning or something!" I said, finding my voice finally.

"I tried to give you hints, but at the time Jason didn't even know he was leaving yet. He didn't know until he had left your room this morning to go see Nate," Cindy tried to explain. I only scoffed at her.

"Alana, don't be like this; you are a better person than this," her words cut me like a knife. The tears started rolling down my cheeks freely now as I realized she was right. It wasn't Jason's choice to leave me, and I acted so cruel towards him.

"Shh honey, don't cry; I'm sure you've done enough already," Cindy comforted me again as she patted my back. I leaned over into her shoulder and sobbed quietly.

"He promised me he wouldn't leave me though; he promised he was different," I whispered to my motherly friend.

"Sweetie you need to realize that he's not breaking his promises. He isn't _leaving _you the way you're thinking about it. He might be leaving physically, but honey, he loves you…he _is _different…I can see it in the way you two look at each other," she stated as she pulled back and placed a strand of hair behind my ear, "and when someone loves another as much as that boy loves you; he would always come back for you," she finished as she tried to wipe my tears away.

I knew Cindy was trying to comfort me, but she only made me cry more. Even if Jason loved me that much…he wouldn't now; not after I hit him.

"Cindy," I whimpered, "I smacked him," I barely could whisper out. I looked down at my hands wanting to avoid her gaze.

"Alana, _why _would you do such a thing?" I could hear the disappointment in her voice.

"I don't really remember what all happened, I just remember he ended up grabbing one of my wrists, and I freaked…I panicked and I smacked him," the sobs started coming again. She pulled me back into her embrace.

"Honey, just explain to him what happened and how you were feeling at the time. I'm sure he would understand. I'm sure it was a very emotional event for the two of you. You just need to talk to him," she said while still rubbing my back. I took a deep breath and tried to calm down.

"What if he doesn't forgive me?" I whimpered. She gave me a sad smile and softly shook her head.

"Well then at least you know you tried," I forced out a laugh as I wiped my cheeks. What I loved most about Cindy is she didn't lie…even if it's what you wanted to hear. She told it like it was.

"I don't know. I don't know if I could take the rejection," I told her hesitantly.

"Alana," she said softly as she took one of my hands, "back when I was your age…I had a chance at love, and I threw it away for my career. Don't get me wrong; I love this job, but every night when the job is done and I go home to my life outside this job, I go home to an empty house. I don't have a husband, I don't have children; sure I have my job and friends, but every night…my bed is empty," she paused as if to fight back tears of her own, "not a day goes by that I don't think about what would have been…if I would have just tried harder. I don't want that to be you, Alana," she gently touched my cheek as a single tear of her own fell.

I reached over and gave my friend a hug. She returned the hug and took a deep breath as we pulled apart. She stood up from off my bed and headed for the door.

"You know, you're allowed to get out of your bed now, since tomorrow you'll be discharged from here. I suggest you go for a walk around the hospital; stretch your legs; maybe take a trip down to room 205," she winked as she walked out the door.

I took a deep breath as I debated in my mind over what I should do to fix my situation.


	19. Chapter 19

It was getting pretty late by the time I decided to try to explain myself to Jason. I doubted he'd be in his brother's room at this time of night, so I decided to write a letter…incase I wouldn't be able to see him again. I grabbed some paper and a pen out of the drawer next to my bed and brainstormed on how to start the letter. It took me about an hour and 3 rough draft copies of my letter before I was content with what I had written. I reread the letter so many times I had it memorized by heart.

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves as I slowly stood up from my bed. My legs were a little wobbly at first considering I haven't have a good walk in over 3 days, but soon I could feel my strength coming back. I made a quick stop by the bathroom to wash my tearstained face and make myself look as presentable as I could.

Once I was done cleaning up I took a deep breath and tried to shake off my nerves again…it didn't work, but I had to do this. I slowly walked down towards Nate's room; every moment seemed like torture. I could feel my nerves getting worse as I reached the door to room 205. It was around 10 p.m. by the time I got to his room and usually all the visitors had to be gone by 9, so I had no clue who would be here, if anyone.

I softly knocked on the door. To my surprise I didn't hear the soft "come in" as I normally would; I was greeted at the door by Shane. He stood in the opening of the door and looked at me. I could feel a tug at my heart when he didn't immediately invite me in.

"Can I help you?" he asked me, with no emotion in his voice at all. I swallowed hard as I fought the urge to cry.

"Is-is Jason here?" I stuttered out nervously as I looked down at my hands.

"He couldn't stay here any longer," Shane said with a hint of bitterness in his voice. The coldness in his voice brought instant tears to my eyes, but I was determined not to let them fall. I inhaled a deep breath before speaking again.

"Could you just…just give him this letter for me? Please?" I held out the folded up sheet of paper. Shane just looked down at it at first.

"Shane, I know you aren't happy with me right now, but it's very important for Jason to read this…please?" I finished in a shaky voice as a few tears escaped my eyes.

As I stood there, preparing myself to beg Shane to just take the letter, Nate walked up next to his brother and slowly took the letter from my trembling hand.

"He'll get it," Nate told me with a soft smile. I forced one back in return before nodding and walking back to my room.

**Jason's POV**

"Honey, I hate to see you like this; moping around, being depressed, looking on the verge of tears constantly, and we haven't even left the state yet," my mother said as she sat down next to me on the couch in our hotel room.

"Don't worry, 'ma, I'm ok with going back home now," I said trying to avoid her gaze. I didn't want her to know that the only reason I was ok with going home now was because the girl I was in love with hate my guts now.

"Baby don't you lie to me," my mother said as she took my chin and forced me to look at her. I sighed. I was never one to talk about my love life with my mom, it was usually one of my brothers but now I was here, trapped, so I figured I'd go ahead and tell her.

"Mom, Alana has commitment issue…she's always afraid that people are going to leave her, and I promised I would never leave her. I told her we'd be here awhile on our first date then it just seemed like right when things…things were getting serious I had to tell her I was leaving. I understand why she got so mad…I just wish she would have listened to me," I paused for a second trying to keep my composure, "she just told me to get out. She didn't want to see me…I don't think she wants to see me ever again," I finished sadly. I wasn't able to keep it together; I let one tear escape.

"Oh honey," my mom said as she pulled me into a hug, "you really do love this girl don't you?" she asked as she pulled back to see my face.

I nodded, "There's just something different about her, mom. She treats me just like any regular person," I thought back to when she smacked me; no other girl would have done that to me, "she's smart, funny, beautiful, she has a real personality, she's amazing with the children at the hospital," my mother smiled softly at me, "she's everything I ever wanted in a girl…and I lost her," I said angrily, more at myself than anyone else.

Soon after I finished speaking we heard a knock on the door, followed by Shane entering the room. He didn't look too happy as he walked over to me and threw a letter in my lap.

"Nate's making me do this," he said as she sat down on one of the chairs next to me and our mom.

I opened the letter and proceeded to read it.

"What is it, honey?" my mom asked over my shoulder. I looked down to see a tear-stained sheet with my name written on it.

"Dear Jason," the letter started out.

"It's a letter from _that girl_," Shane said bitterly, but I chose to ignore him.

"I know you must think I'm a horrid person for the way I treated you earlier, and you're right to think of me that way…because I am. It was selfish of me to get so upset with you when you're only doing what is best for your family. I should have listened to you, I should have let you stay, and we should have talked it over like the two adults we are, but I only acted like a selfish child. And I _**am so sorry **_for slapping you. You didn't deserve it, but I just freaked out when I felt your hand on my wrist; but that isn't an excuse. I should have asked you to stop…not did what I did.

I know you must hate me and I don't blame you. Honestly I'd be surprised if you even read this letter, but it's the only thing I can think to do. I don't know if I'll ever see you again, but if I don't I want you to know that _I love you, Jason Gray_. You are the most amazing man I have ever met and any girl who ends up with you is the luckiest girl in the world.

Anyways, I just want you to know that I am sorry, and if you are ever in town again feel free to give me a call.

Love always,

Your girlfriend,

Your Friend, Alana"

I traced the tear stains on the sheet as I reread the letter over and over again. I couldn't believe it…_she _was sorry. She had every right to be angry at me, but she wrote an apology letter to _me_.

"She still loves me," I gasped, "I need to go see her," I said as I threw down the letter, quickly got up and grabbed my hat.

"Wait a minute, lover boy," my mother said in a serious tone, "I think we should have a talk before you go running up there," she finished with a mischievous smile.

I had no idea at that moment that what she was going to tell me would be the greatest thing in my life.


	20. Chapter 20

Hey everyone! This is the last chapter; hope you liked the story!

-Kris

* * *

I awoke the next morning to loud knocking at my door. Last night had been a rough night for me after I gave my letter to Nate. I rubbed my eyes before glancing at the clock… it was 7 A.M. I let out a small groan into my pillow before yelling for the person to come in.

"You ready to get out of that bed yet?" I heard Cindy's voice ring from across the room. I looked up at with a glare, "You have no idea." She smiled warmly at me.

"Well get changed and go take a walk around the hospital for a bit while I pull up some forms you should sign. Be back in about an hour?" she asked while she went to the closet in the room and pulled out some of my clothes. I nodded as I accepted them from her.

Cindy left so I could change into my normal clothes, and while I was getting dressed I could only think of one place to go…room 205. I had to see if Jason had left yet. Once I looked decent I quickly walked down the halls I knew so well.

I could feel the familiar knots in my stomach as I was getting closer and closer to Nate's door, but they seemed to be far worse today than they were last night. The fear of never seeing Jason again hit me the worst last night after I had returned to my room. I thought that I had cried all the tears I could for that man, but obviously I was wrong. I wasn't really expecting Nate or his brothers to be in the room still, but secretly I was praying that I was wrong.

I slowly approached the door and softly knocked…

No answer.

I knocked again, this time a little louder…

No answer.

Finally I worked up the courage to open the door. The scene shouldn't have broke my heart as much as it did, considering I was expecting it, but just to see that empty bed and to know that Jason was gone; out of my life…probably forever…it broke my heart as I fought back the tears.

I slowly walked over to the bed. I remembered my first day coming into this room and meeting Nate. I remember how pale and exhausted he looked; I remember how excited he was when I lent him my iPod, and how worried he and his brothers were when I found out exactly who they were.

I then walked over to the chairs sitting across from the bed. I sat down in the one Jason always use to sit in. I could feel tears freely falling now. I softly ran my fingers up and down the arms of the chair I was sitting in.

I thought back to the time Jason and I told Holly her bedtime story, and how later that day he asked for my phone number. I smiled as I remembered our date and how romantic he was; how he rented the entire ice rink just so we could enjoy our date without people recognizing him.

I couldn't take it anymore; I pulled my knees to my chest started to cry into them. I quietly sobbed to myself, as I thought back on the many amazing times that Jason and I shared together.

I had the most wonderful man and I just threw him away like he was nothing to me. I was such a stupid girl, and I hated myself for that.

"Are you looking for someone?" I heard a voice ask from the other side of the room. I took a quick second to wipe my cheeks before looking up.

I looked up to see Jason Gray standing across the room holding a bouquet of assorted flowers. I couldn't believe my eyes. I quickly rubbed them to make sure I wasn't seeing things before jumping out of my seat to run and engulf him in a huge hug.

"What are you doing here?" I asked in disbelief as we pulled apart.

"Do you not want me to be here?" he asked with one eyebrow raised. I smiled softly.

"That's not what I meant! I thought you were supposed to be going home today," I didn't even care that he was teasing me; I just wanted to know what was going on.

"Well it started when I got your letter last night," I blushed slightly at the mention of the letter, "I read it and I had a little discussion with my mom," he grinned at me.

"What was it about?" I asked, truly curious.

"I told her that there was no possible way I could leave someone that I love so much," he whispered as he gently caressed my cheek, before tenderly placing a soft kiss upon my lips. I wrapped my arms around his neck as I deepened our kiss. Just a moment ago I thought I'd never see the man of my dreams again, so I'd be damned if I let him leave again without knowing how much I loved him.

Jason cleared as throat as we pulled away, "Um, these are for you," he said bashfully as he handed me the flowers. I quietly laughed at how my kiss had affected him.

"Thank you," I whispered as I took the flowers and smelt them. I could tell Jason was watching my every move. I gently placed the flowers down on the bed not too far from us as I looked up into Jason's eyes.

"So…um…when does your family leave?" I asked quietly, trying not to make the situation awkward.

He smiled at me again as he gently stroked my jaw line with his index finger.

"Alana, my family has left already. My mother said I could stay here for the rest of my vacation, until our tour starts up again," he finished with a proud smile. I couldn't contain my happiness as I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him close to me. I could hear him laughing as he gently hugged me back.

We slowly broke apart and I looked up into his gorgeous brown eyes, "I love you, Jason," I whispered sincerely to him.

He smiled down at me before tenderly kissing my lips once more.

"I love you, Alana," he whispered as our lips parted, "and I'll _never_ leave you."


End file.
